Practical Magic
by WifeysforLifey
Summary: SwanQueen AU: For the better part of their lives Regina and Zelena Mills had turned their backs on the legacy of their family. They were witches and they wanted nothing to do with the craft. That is until an accident forces the sisters to dive head first into dark magic, sparking the attention of detective Emma Swan as they try and right their mistake and save their family.
1. Chapter 1

**AN:** I own nothing of Once Upon a Time nor anything associated with the movie/novel Practical Magic. The only thing I do have is an OG Characters that come along. Now that that's out of the way continue you on to Wick Queen feels with Swan Queen added in for flavor :)

* * *

The incessant ticking in the quiet room was what pulled Regina's consciousness to the surface. With a frown she glanced over at the clock on her bed side table, the demanding red numbers informing her that it was just after four in the morning.

Why was she awake?

The warm body beside her shifted and it became clear that it must have been her daughter who'd roused her from her sleep but her thoughts were interrupted by another deafening tick, tick, tick. In the instant it took her mind to identify the sound her heart clenched in her chest.

The deathwatch beetle.

All of her life she'd been told what this omen would bring. She'd witnessed it first hand when her father died when she was no older than the little girl who laid between herself and Daniel was currently.

When the deathwatch beetle began to chirp in the home of a Mills woman it meant death. The death of the man who loved her.

A curse that had been passed down from generation to generation of Mills women had found its way into Regina's home at last. She'd blindly thought that after the last eight years of marriage that maybe, just maybe, she'd surpassed the death sentence that had stolen away countless loves from her relatives.

The thought of loosing Daniel, _her Daniel_ , had her shooting bolt upright in bed, her dark eyes blown wide with fear.

"No…" She breathed under her breath, her eyes raking over the serene face of her husband and their daughter, Robyn, who slept soundly curled up together, none the wiser of the doom that loomed before them.

This wasn't happening. It _couldn't_ be happing. She couldn't lose him. She wouldn't.

"Not him, please," she pleaded, praying to anything that would listen that the dreaded ticking would stop.

But it didn't.

It continued to tick through the early morning hours, always moving away from Regina as she sought out the insect that spelled out the destruction of her family.

Crouched in the closet, pulling boxes from the furthest corners, was how Daniel found his wife, whispering wildly at the floorboards.

"Reg? Honey?" His sleep riddled voice called to her as he came to lean against the door frame, the frown he wore audible in his tone. "What are you doing?"

Regina jumped, the sound of something that wasn't ticking taking her by surprise.

"Daniel! Oh Daniel," she sighed with relief. A relief that didn't quiet settle right in her chest. Just because he was okay right now didn't mean it would last. Not until she found that beetle and killed it. If she killed the damned bug surely that would break the curse, at least, that's what she prayed would happen.

"Honey, you look spooked. Are you alright? Can I help you find what you're looking for?"

Pushing up from the floor, she reached for his hand before it was even offered and clasped it tightly between her own, her eyes begging him with every ounce of her being. "Don't go to work today. I have a bad feeling. Please, just stay here today. We can keep the kids home and have a quiet day as a family. _Please Daniel_. Don't go in today."

Furrowing his brow in his growing confusion, Daniel pulled his wife against his chest, enveloping her in his strong arms to try and calm her visibly frayed nerves.

"I can't stay home today, you know that. We have that new stallion arriving today. I have to be there to sign off," he sighed and planted a kiss against her dark locks. "What's brought all this on huh? Did you have another dream? Honey, nothing is going to happen today. Not when I have one of the towns best witches on my side," he teased with another kiss to her head before pulling back.

" _It isn't funny Daniel!_ " All of the fear that had plagued her since she woke up seeped into her words making them sound clipped with her growing frustration. The heat of her tone had him turning back to look at her unwavering glare.

"Alright, what if after I get everything settled at work I come back home and you and I can have some much needed time to ourselves?" Wrapping his arms around her waist, he gently pulled her back to him with a calm, patient smile. "Henry and Robyn can go to school like normal and you and I will spend the rest of the day together."

"Daniel-"

"I'll be home by eleven at the latest. Maybe we can call your Aunt Mal and see if she'd like to pick the kids up and keep them so we can go on a date. An actual date. Dinner, movies- the whole nine yards. We haven't done that in a while. What do you say Reg, do you wanna go out with me?" He asked with a crooked grin that always managed to earn one in return from the woman in his arms.

Sighing heavily, Regina stared up at him with defeat in her eyes. "Promise me you'll be careful and that as soon as you're done at work you'll come right home. No going to the Rabbit Hole with Jefferson. No stopping for anything. Straight home. _Promise me_."

"I promise Regina. Nothing's going happen and later I'm going to take my favorite girl out for a night on the town."

Leaning down to capture her lips, Daniel put an end to any more of her worries. The ticking of the beetle silenced for the time being and for a moment Regina believed that maybe it really had just been a terrible, terrible dream.

* * *

Regina stood in front of the kitchen sink with a lukewarm cup of coffee in her hands, the edge of the mug pressed against her lower lip as she stared out the window sightlessly. The morning had gone as it usually would. Showers, rousing two tired children who needed to get dressed, breakfast in a rush- everything was normal. The normal that Regina had strived hard to get.

Being a Mills in the small town of Storybooke Maine came with a stigma behind it. It was no secret that magic flowed through their veins and when she and her older sister Zelena were younger and newly moved back into town with their Auntie Mal shortly after their parents deaths it had lead to ruthless teasing and taunts that still echoed in her mind all these years later. It hadn't been until she married Daniel that things had changed for her. Everyone in town seemed to forget that once upon a time they would throw stones.

It was everything she had ever wanted. To just be normal.

 _Maybe_ , she mused to herself, _if I focus hard enough I can will things to remain as they are_.

She could beat this curse that had plagued her family for well over a century. She would keep Daniel.

As if it had heard her thoughts, a loud tick sounded from somewhere behind her. The mug in her hands slipped from her grasp and shattered against the edge of the counter, exploding shards of ceramic and coffee all over the hardwood floors and her bare feet.

"No!" She howled as she whipped around, her voice rising as she shouted at the empty room. "No! _I won't let you take him!_ "

Ignoring the scattered mess around her, she stormed into the utility room to find a screw driver in Daniel's tool box, determined to find the harbinger that threatened everything she held dear.

"You are _not_ taking him, do you hear me?! _You're not taking him_ ," she growled defiantly as she dropped to her hands and knees and pressed her ear to the floor, straining her ears to hear where the ticking was coming from.

She crawled along the floor, stabbing the point of the screw driver into the seam of the floor boards, prying them up with hands that trembled. She didn't care if she had to take up the whole house, she would find that beetle.

"Come on, come on- where are you?! _WHERE ARE YOU_!?"

Her voice wavered and tears began to blur her vision as desperation set in. The ticking had picked up, sounding loudly throughout the kitchen making her heart constrict as she sat up on her haunches.

In her mind she could see it with perfect clarity.

Daniel was squatting in front of the tack house with a black dog he appeared to be trying to persuade to come over, his hand out stretched towards the mutt who steadfastly refused to come any closer, entirely unaware of the feed truck that was pulling in too fast behind him.

A strangled cry caught in her throat as she tried to shout for him to move. But he couldn't hear her. Not from here. Not with her alone in their home miles away from the stables.

The impact of the truck striking the firm mass of his body was jarring and instantly the beetle's frenzied ticking ceased to fill the kitchen.

The silence lasted barely a moment before her harsh, pain filled wails filled the void, drowning out the house phone that shrilly demanded she answer. She didn't need to answer it. She knew what that call would be saying. She had seen it. She had felt it.

Daniel was gone.

The curse won.


	2. Chapter 2

It had been hours since the last well meaninged person had left her home leaving her alone in the loudest silence she had ever been subjected to. How many hours Regina wasn't sure but it had been quite a few she thought, though to be fair she wasn't sure about a lot of things that night.

She wasn't sure how Sheriff Graham had gotten into her home to find her sobbing in the mess of floor boards and shattered glass to inform her about Daniel. She wasn't sure how her children had gotten home or if they had even eaten dinner.

For someone who had their days planned to a t this was new but she couldn't summon up the will to care to change it. She didn't care about anything. She didn't care about anyone but Daniel. He was her every thought in that moment and it was maddening.

Pacing through the hallway, her frustration grew to a head until she growled at the walls around her. "No! This isn't how this ends."

She turned on her heel and stormed away from the kitchen that still laid in shambles with floorboards scattered about and a few plates and cups added to the shattered mug shards littering the bits of floor that weren't pulled up.

No, this wasn't how her marriage would end. She vowed to grow old with Daniel and that was exactly what she planned on doing. She didn't care what she had to do to get him back.

In her rushed jog to the front door she paused to grab her keys and turned to look back toward the stairs that lead up to her children's rooms. It wasn't something she had ever done before, leaving her eight year old and six year old home alone in the middle of the night, but with one glance at the keys in her trembling hands she knew it was a risk she had to take. She had to get to Mal.

Mal could fix this. She had to fix this.

Steeling her resolve, Regina flung the door open and rushed out, stopping only to lock the door behind her before her feet took off in a dead run. It was only half a block to her Aunt's estate but by the time she raced through the garden and up the back steps her breathing was ragged with the threat of sobs to come.

Her hands slapped frantically against the old wooden door, her fingers dug at the weathered white paint that coated it, and by the time the door pulled open her tears had already begun to fall and she collapsed into her Aunt's waiting arms with a heartbreaking howl.

"Oh my darling little girl," the older woman cooed with a heavy heart, stroking her fingers through Regina's bedraggled braid. "I didn't know. If I had known you would truly love him so much I wouldn't have-"

Sniffling harshly, Regina lifted her head up from its place hidden against her Aunt's chest. The confusion she felt reflected plainly in her somber eyes. "You wouldn't have what? What wouldn't you have done?"

Mal shifted her weight uncomfortably under the uncertain gaze of her niece, the guilt she felt over being the catalyst to her niece's pain didn't settle well with her at all. "After Zelena left you were _so_ sad Regina. I couldn't reach you. You had lost your spark and I couldn't bear to see you so sad darling. I was so very worried about you, so I cast-"

Ripping away from her Aunt, Regina recoiled, glaring at her through her welled up tears as anger burned through every molecule in her body at the implications her Aunt was insinuating at.

"Oooh," her throat constricted around the word, her hand pressed to her chest in her struggle to find her breath. "Tell me you didn't- not Daniel. You didn't. No. I _loved_ him. _That was real._ It _is_ real!"

"Of course it was Regina. I just didn't realize you would ever love him so much that the curse-"

" _No!_ No!" She all but screamed at Mal, a fire building up in her gut as she glared at the woman who had raised her since she was no more than six. The woman who soothed every hurt, kissed away tears, and supplied endless chocolate cupcakes on nights when she wanted her parents so badly it became a physical pain in her chest.

"You did this and you're going to fix it!"

"Regina I won't-"

" _YES YOU CAN! I'VE SEEN THE SPELL_! In your book! I know you can do this! I have never asked you for anything when it comes to the craft but I'm asking you now, please-" Regina's voice strained and shook with emotion and tears once again began blur her vision as they spilled down her already raw cheeks. She clasped her hands together in front of her, begging. "Please. _Please bring him back_. Please. You brought him into my life and I need you to do it again. Please Auntie Mal. Please. Please do this. _Please_. _Please. Pleeeeaaase_. I can't- _please bring him back. Please_."

With a heavy sigh Mal shook her head sadly, unable to actually verbalize the no in the face of her niece who was falling apart before her very eyes.

A harsh sob prevented any further pleading from Regina as her legs gave out from under her, sending her to the floor in a heap of tears and uncontrollable wails that verged on hysteria.

What was she going to do? She was alone and everything hurt. Hurt more than she knew it could. For the first time in her life she understood how her Mother had died of a broken heart after her Father was taken from them.

"Oh my sweet girl!"

Strong arms wrapped themselves around her trembling body, pulling her against an age worn chest, but it didn't do any good. These weren't the arms she wanted to seek comfort in. This was not how things were suppose to be.

And all she could do was cry until there was nothing left to cry out.

* * *

The days after Daniel's death and subsequent funeral morphed into a blur of moments that rushed by and moments that refused to end. Those moments, the ones that stretched on endlessly, were what kept her awake at night, staring wide eyed up into the rafters of the room she once lived in when she was a little girl.

It had been an easy decision to move back in with her Aunt. Even though Henry and Robyn were old enough to get themselves breakfast and pick out their clothes they still needed someone who made sure they got off to school on time. Someone that put lunches in their backpacks and made dinner for them to come home to in the evening.

They needed someone who was _there_.

Not someone who could barely crawl out of bed to shower once every few days. They needed someone Regina was not and that should have hurt but she was too numb to feel anything other than emptiness and a longing that ran so deep it stole her breath away.

She wasn't sure what day it was but she could tell it was morning by the way the room glowed through the thin sheet she hid under and if the sounds from downstairs were any indication it was a school day too.

With her eyes still closed tight, Regina rubbed a finger along the length of the scar that marred the heel of her left hand, wishing beyond everything that Zelena was there curled up in bed beside her. She needed her sister now more than ever and the fact that she wasn't there sent a physical pang through her heart.

The soft creaking of her door alerted her to her visitor before Henry even had a chance to gently call through the crack. "Mom? Are you up?… Mom?"

Creeping into the room, he quietly made his way to the bed. After a moment of deliberation he shucked his shoes off and crawled under the blanket, a crooked smile curled his lips into a one-sided grin at the sight of his Mother awake. "Morning Mom."

Despite the festering hole in her chest, Regina still loved her children fiercely, and that rush of emotion had her pulling Henry the rest of the way to her where she curled her body around him, snuggling her nose against the warm skin of his neck so that when she breathed in it was the scent of the boy who held the remaining pieces of her shattered heart.

"I'm sorry I'm so sleepy all the time Henry. I just can't seem keep my eyes open," she breathed against his neck, the warmth of his little body against hers comforting in a way that nothing had been in what felt like an eternity.

"It's okay Mom, you don't have to explain. I miss him too."

The lump that formed in her throat was swift and all consuming. It strangled away any comfort she could have offered her son. Tears burned at the backs of her eyes and she wasn't sure she could've done anything to fight off the sob that threatened slip free of her lips had she opened her mouth at that moment.

Thankfully the sound of tiny elephant feet thundered through the hallway and clear into the bedroom followed by another smaller body diving onto them with reckless abandon.

"MOMMY!" Robyn's happy squeal pierced the room with all the enthusiasm of a six year old who was just given a cupcake for breakfast.

"Mmmm, I smell chocolate cake. Do you smell chocolate cake Henry?" Regina hummed as she freed an arm from around her son so that she could pull her daughter under the covers with them, her fingers finding the place against the girl's side that always made Robyn scream with childish delight.

"Oooouch! Don't kick Robyn! You're going to hurt Mom!" Henry groused, snuggling further against him Mom with a lazy grin. He had missed these moments with his Mom and he was determined to soak in every second of her attention without interruption from his little sister.

"Sorry Mommy. Did I hurt you?"

Breathing out a tired yet contented sigh, Regina pressed a kiss to Henry's temple before answering her daughter. "No baby, you didn't hurt me," she said and pressed a kiss to the wily girl's soft cheek too.

"Pheeewwww," Robyn breathed comically, earning a husky chuckle from her Mother. "Auntie Mal telled me to come get you Henry. She said if we wanted a ride to school we needed to hurry cuz she's leavin' with or without us."

A muffled groan fell from the boy's lips. He didn't want to leave his Mom, not when she was actually awake and holding him. After a pause and a long suffering sigh he pulled away. "Will you be up when we get home from school Mom? Maybe we could watch a movie or something together."

Guilt pierced the shards of Regina's heart. Clearing her throat, she reached up to stroke Henry's cheek. "Of course darling. I'll even let you pick," she managed to croak out from around the lump that lingered in her throat.

"And me Mommy?!"

Another husky chuckle rumbled in her chest. Repeating the tender touch, this time to Robyn's rounded cheek, Regina nodded again. "You too my love. Now go on, Auntie Mal is waiting. I'll see you both after school."

Henry's dark eyes regarded her with uncertainty before he reluctantly grabbed his shoes from their discarded place by the bed and got up. "Well, even if we don't watch a movie I'll come lay with you okay? I love you Mom."

"Yeah, we can snuggle later okay?! I love you too Mommy!" A sloppy kiss followed Robyn's declaration, making the guilt twist further in Regina's chest.

Struggling to keep it together, she managed a painful twitch of her lips, her eyes glazing over with unshed tears.

"I love you too babies," she whispered through the haze of her grief tinged guilt. "I love you too."

* * *

Somewhere between breaking down after the sound of tiny feet had left the home silent and getting up to take another dose of tylenol to dull the painful twinges of her headache she had fallen back to sleep.

For the second time that day the creak of the door and the groan of the bed frame roused Regina from her slumber.

"Henry… I'm sorry darling. I fell asleep again," she groaned, not wanting to open her eyes and see the disappointment on his young face when the sheet was carefully tagged away from its place over top of her.

The tender brush of a finger tip down the length of her nose made her eyes snap open- there was only one person who had ever done that besides her Mother.

Zelena.

Tears instantly blurred her vision as she looked into the solemn face of her big sister laying on the pillow next to her, close enough that she could feel the slow steady breath Zelena let out at the sight of her rapidly crumpling expression.

" _I was really, really, happy,_ " Regina whispered thickly before losing herself to a harsh sob that quickly turned into many.

"I know you were baby," Zelena breathed and pulled Regina against her chest until there wasn't an inch of space between them. Each racking sob that shook through her baby sister tore a new hole in her heart. "I know."


	3. Chapter 3

"Did you ever forgive her? Cora? For giving up after Daddy died?" Zelena asked from her place resting against the intricately woven wrought iron headboard of Regina's bed as she stroked her slender fingers through the long dark locks that pooled across her stomach.

It had been years since she had last seen Regina, nearly over a decade really, and so much had changed between them since when they were angst riddled teenagers wanting nothing more than to not be _those_ girls the town's people always whispered about.

But despite the time and distance that had lingered between them it didn't change the comfort that Regina only ever sought from her big sister and that was something Zelena had missed more than she realized.

She'd missed being needed.

Regina took some time to mull over the loaded question, choosing to suck her lower lip between her teeth where she gnawed at the supple cracked skin. "If you had asked me a month ago I would have said no. Not really. But now? I don't know," she sighed heavily against Zelena's shirt beneath her cheek. "I understand now why she couldn't go on without Daddy. Do you forgive her?"

"No."

It was an easy answer for Zelena. The single syllable word reeked of the bitterness she still harbored for the woman who chose to die over being there for them all those years ago when they so desperately needed their Mother.

She would never forgive her Mother for following after their Father and leaving them alone with no one but their Aunt to care for them. "And I know you Regina, you won't forgive yourself if you just lay here and do the same to Henry and Robyn. You can't leave them without both of their parents like Cora did us."

"You make it sound _so easy_ ," Regina spat and roughly pulled away from the tender touch of her sister's fingers until she was sitting up with her arms crossed defensively across her chest, a scowl firmly in place. " _You don't know what this feels like_. What this _hole_ where my heart use to be feels like Zelena. You don't know _how much_ I just want to give up- how _hard it is_ to not just give up."

"No, you're right. I don't know what that feels like. But I do know what it feels like to grow up alone without a Mom and Dad. I know you want to give up Regina but you don't get that option. Not now. Not when you're such a great Mom to those beautiful babies of yours. Don't take the same path our Mother did. You're so much stronger than she ever was."

Lowering her gaze to her lap, Regina refused to hold the hard blue eyes that bored into her. " _It's so hard Zee_ ," she whispered in a voice that wavered around the steadily growing lump in her throat.

"I know it is. The things that are worth it usually are darling. But believe me, you would hate yourself forever if you gave up on those beautiful little puppies you have. You have people to fight for. Don't lose sight of us. I still plan on growing old with you in this house with a thousand cats some day," she grinned pathetically, hoping that it would make her sister look up and when dark eyes lifted with a quirked eyebrow she continued with utmost seriousness, " _I refuse to lose you Regina._ "

Swallowing thickly, Regina nodded her head in reluctant agreement. Her heart still ached beyond compare but for a moment the clarity Zelena's words provided gave her the nudge she needed to see the situation on a broader scale than she had been.

It was okay to miss Daniel.

To grieve for him and wish for oblivion. But it would never be okay to allow herself to sink as far as to actually succumb to it. It wasn't an option to give up on the people she had left in this world who still needed her. Not like her Mother had.

"I'm going to hold you to that."

"Hold me to what?"

Regina snorted out a breath, kicking her foot against her sister's shin with little strength behind the assault. "The growing old together here surrounded by a house full of felines."

"Oh!" She laughed with a wave of her hand. "That's a given. You're suck with me for life I'm afraid my dear little sister."

"Have you thought of moving back to Storybrooke?" Regina asked with her eyes down cast, focused on her fingers that picked absently at her chipped nail polish, afraid of the rejection that would more than likely be coming after that.

She knew that Zelena enjoyed her life in Tallahassee where she had surrounded herself with people who sought instant gratification over the slow simple lifestyle that she herself loved. It had always been that way for the two of them. Zelena wanting to rush off on some kind of adventure while she was happy to remain home working in the garden or with Auntie Mal on her latest casting. Zelena thrived on lust and love and frivolity- all the things that were lacking in their sleepy seaside town.

Zelena hummed noncommittally, a hint of a grin curling up one side of her mouth into a smirk.

Glancing up at the less than impressive response, Regina studied the smirk and instantly rolled her eyes. "Who is this one? In the last letter you sent you were deeply infatuated with a bricklayer named Oz. Are you still with him or is this another one to add to the ever growing list dear?"

"Ha! That was almost four months ago! He's old news darling." The ginger girl laughed and pushed away from the headboard she'd been leaning against for the last hour so that she could scoot closer to her sister. Their knees bumped together and her grin grew into a blinding smile that lit her blue eyes ablaze.

"His name is Nikomedes Thanos and I swear to you Regina he's the one."

Regina scrunched up her face as she tried to process the turn of their conversation, fighting tooth and nail to ignore the pang in her heart over the thought her sister having found love when she had just lost her own.

That pang was what had her barking out in barely concealed repulsion, "What the hell kind of name is _Nikomedes Thanos_?! Where do you find all of these men? You have the _worst_ taste in the opposite sex."

"Says the girl who cast a spell for some person who could never exist so that she didn't fall in love!" Zelena scoffed and swatted her sister's thigh with a playful slap that was repeated thrice.

"He's not like anyone I've ever dated before Gina," she said, her eyes glazing over with a deeply rooted infatuation that made Regina shift uncomfortably.

"He's from somewhere in Greece- like real old world Greece. Nik says he's a decedent of Hades and the way he talks about it- I really think he is because sometimes when he stares at me I swear I can feel my soul being pulled towards his. I really think he's the one Regina. I can't put my finger on it but I think… I mean I _really_ _feel_ that he's my soul mate."

For the next hour Zelena rehashed in great detail the last four months of her life while Regina sat stoically, focused on listening to her sister and not the flutters of envy that danced around her chest whispering how unfair this all was.

* * *

Standing on the front porch, a robe pulled tightly around her body to ward off the early evening chill as the sun began to kiss the horizon, Regina stood holding onto her sister firmly. She didn't want to let go, to let her leave yet, but she knew she had to. Zelena had a life to get back to and she had her own to try and put back together.

"Write to me. I promise I'll write back more often and if you need anything, anything at all-"

"I know, call and you'll be here. You know the same goes for you too Zelena. Should you need anything…" She murmured, fighting back the misting of tears that bit at her eyes when she pulled away from the strong hug.

"You're the only person I'd ever call Regina. Take care of those babies and give Auntie my love. I wish I could stay longer but…" Zelena trailed off with a wince. The conflict she was feeling as she lingered on the front porch steps was evident in every twitch of her features. She wanted to stay but she knew she had to go. She needed to get back home to her life a thousand miles away.

"You need to go. I understand." Reaching her hand out, Regina gently stroked her thumb against the pale freckled skin of her sister's bicep. "Try not to make it so long between visits. I would love it if you could to meet the kids. I tell them so much about you. They would love to meet their Aunt Zelena sometime."

A crooked grin spread across Zelena's lips and she nodded in agreement. "I promise. Don't forget to write, I want to hear every boring detail and get a cat- we need to start stock piling now!" The older woman laughed morosely, her bright eyes dulled down with welling tears. "I love you Regina. You're the bravest woman I know."

"Hardly, but I appreciate your blind faith in me and I'll be sure to get that cat- I'll send a picture. And, I love you too Zee. Have a safe flight back to Florida. Call me when you get in so I know that you got home safely please."

With a single nod Zelena stepped down one step and then another, her shoulders squared and chin held high- she wasn't going to cry. Heading back towards the rental car she had picked up in Boston, her gaze continued to stray over her shoulder to her sister- her sweet baby sister who swiped at traitor tears that spilled down her cheeks - until she got behind the wheel and drove away with her heart breaking.

It would never be easy walking away from Regina.

Not ever.

* * *

When the babble of voices sounded from the front of the house Regina paused to wipe the flour from her hands on the apron she wore and struggled to suppress the grin she felt curling at her lips when she distinctly heard Robyn ask what smelled so good and if Auntie Mal had magicked them up some dinner while they were out (which had earned the child a chuckled no from the older woman).

In the time that Zelena had left she had pushed herself to shower and get dressed in something that wasn't the pajamas she'd been wearing for weeks and when that was done she went on to cook up a batch of her famous lasagna as an apology to her children for being so absent of late.

She was even making apple turn overs, something she knew Henry would love the most.

"Mom?" His timid little voice questioned from the door way, a look of awed confusion clear in his soulful brown eyes that matched hers so completely.

"MOMMY!" Robyn cried, pushing her way past her brother so that she could throw herself at her mother's legs. She nuzzled her nose against her Mom with no qualms about the flour that now dusted her nose and cheeks. "Mommy what are you doing awake!? We thought you'd be sleeping!"

Pushing the harsh sting of guilt away for later, Regina effortlessly lifted the tiny redhead into her arms, snuggling her floury cheek with her nose. "I couldn't miss movie night could I? And what would movie night be without some treats?"

Henry moved further into the room, the uncertain look never leaving his face until he spotted the turnovers that sat ready to be baked on the cookie sheet in front of his Mother. "Are those… _YOU MADE TURN OVERS?!_ " Whooping out a cheer, he surged forward to clasp his arms around his Mom's middle in a fierce hug. "You're the best Mom _ever_!"

Regina hummed, her throat far too tight to verbally acknowledge the generous statement from her son and closed her eyes so that she could relish this moment with her children who still loved her even if she was nothing more than a broken version of herself.

When her eyes finally opened again she smiled weakly at Mal who leaned against the door frame between the kitchen and the hallway watching the scene unfold.

"How was Zelena? I feel she's already heading back to Tallahassee. That was a short visit."

"She was well. She sends her love and wishes that she could have stayed longer but she had to get back."

Mal snickered under her breath and shook her head. She pushed away from her leaning place with a sigh, she highly doubted that Zelena wanted to linger in the tired town for longer than a few hours but she wouldn't say that to Regina, not when the girl looked more alive than she'd seen in days- hell weeks even.

"Dinner smells wonderful darling, you out did yourself tonight."

"Thank you. I'm… Trying," she breathed. A small timid smile curled her lips uncertainly. She didn't know if this would last or if she would fall to pieces within the next few hours or even days from now but she was trying and that was the best that she could do. "I'm _really_ trying."

And she wasn't going to stop. Not for anything in this world. Not when she had two sets of arms holding onto her like she was their everything.

She had to do this.

For them.


	4. Chapter 4

_My dearest Zelena,_

 _It is incredible what can transpire within a few months. I don't know where to begin. As a whole things have finally begun to improve around the house, though I'm not entirely sure that living with Mal was as wise a decision as it initially started out to be. Despite my insistence that she not teach the children about the old ways I have walked in on them whispering over her books more than once. Henry is more transparent in his guilt than Robyn is when I walk into the room. I worry about her. Just today I received a call from school saying that I needed to come collect her because she had hexed another student in her class! Well, they didn't exactly say that per se. They said she was bullying a student but when I got her home she confessed to being teased about her witchy Mother having killed their Father which resulted in her wishing the delinquent got chicken pox! Granted I think the insufferable little twerp deserved it for saying such cruel things to her, I have no doubt that I will be receiving a phone call tomorrow further discussing this matter. She is strong Zelena. I don't want her to grow up like we did, not with the taunts and accusations. I had hoped those were long behind us. I'm at a loss for what to do._

 _As for everything else, things are slowly moving towards a point where I don't feel like I am drowning in myself. I've resumed taking the children to school and I even managed to take the profit from selling our home to open a little cafe that Daniel always said I should open. For the most part I can get through the day- the stress of operating a business is a welcomed distraction._

 _But then there are nights like tonight when there is a different kind of longing that fills the void in my chest and silences the grief that still clings to my every move. It's a longing, an ache, for a love that I feel I will never again know- a love that might even be stronger than what Daniel and I shared. The thought of never again feeling that contentment of laying in someone's arms, feeling safe and loved beyond measure, is so staggering it steals my breath away. There is so much time left in my life and I fear I'll never again feel complete, that this empty longing is all that I'll be left with. It frightens me. Am I destined to spend the rest of my days so acutely alone?_

 _Tonight I sit at the window with one of the kittens asleep on my lap. It smells like a storm is rolling in from the sea but it's too dark to be sure. Somewhere in the trees I can hear an owl and it has me on edge. Change is coming, something dark. I'm fearful of what more we will be subjected to. Perhaps this omen is nothing more than an owl. I pray that is all it is. I don't think I could stomach anything more._

 _I hope you are well Zelena, I miss you so very much. Please be safe._

 _All my love,_

 _Regina_

* * *

Regina breathed out a soft sigh, the room finally silent but for the soft purr of the ball of fluff nestled in her lap. Writing to her sister had become her favored weekly task. She would sit down on Friday evenings and spill every last thought she had onto page after page of stationary. Then, if the letter had been particularly gloomy, Zelena would call a day or two later and they would lay in bed talking long into the night.

It felt good to have her sister back in her life.

Scratching Tofu behind the ears, a small but very real smile curled at her lips over the thunderous purr that emitted from the tiny feline. "I'm sorry to have to move you darling but I'm afraid I must go have a talk with Robyn. Truth be told I would much rather stay here with you and Annabelle than have yet another talk about magic."

With reluctance she carefully scooped the sleepy kitty into her arms as she stood from her seat at the window, stashing the freshly written letter in the pocket of her dressing gown.

Depositing the kitten next to its sister at the end of her bed, Regina spared one last parting glance over her shoulder at her own private hideaway before she forced herself to move quietly down the stairs.

"Is Mommy going to be mad at me _f-o-r-e-v-e-r_ cuz I gived Nicholas the pops?" Robyn's somber little voice carried into the stairwell, freezing Regina in her place.

"No sweetheart, she won't be angry with you forever. Your Mommy, she has a lot on her mind right now and she's… She's just scared. She doesn't like that we're not like everyone else in town."

"Is that why she doesn't cast Auntie Mal?" Henry asked from behind his homework, his soulful eyes filled with concerned curiosity. "Did she use to? Cast spells, when she was little and living here with you and Auntie Zee after Gramma and Grampa died?"

Mal turned her warm gaze from Robyn to the little boy at the other end of the table, the edges of her lips twitching sadly. "Yes, she use to cast but after your Grandma Cora passed away things changed for her, Henry. It changed for all of us."

He nodded his head slowly, mulling over that answer. "Daddy died like Grampa did didn't he? Will that happen to us? To Robyn and me if we fall in love?"

"Are we gonna die of broken hearts like Gramma Cora?" Robyn added to the list of questions Henry posed and turned to rest her head forlornly against her great aunt's shoulder, her eyes wide, reflecting a sadness no six year old should ever know.

"I-"

Regina had heard enough.

Her heart pounded hard against her chest and her ears began to ring but as she stepped around the last corner of the stairs into the kitchen she plastered on a tight lipped smile for the sake of her children.

"And what have you three been up to while I was upstairs?"

Startled, everyone at the table looked up with varying degrees of surprise etched on their faces.

Recovering first, Mal smiled smoothly, motioning to the kitchen timer that suddenly began to chirp.

"Just making cupcakes dear. For after dinner- of course," she said calmly though the twinkle in her azure eyes gave away her amusement at being caught 'filling their heads with nonsense' like she had been warned not to do just that morning.

Regina didn't buy it but she chose not to comment on the too well timed excuse- or the lack of freshly baked cupcake smell that definitely wasn't in the air.

"Hmmm, I see."

"Henry, would you be a dear and come and help me pick some mint from the greenhouse? I think I want to make mint chocolate frosting for the cupcakes tonight and I could use an extra hand," Mal asked with a pat to Robyn's back, coaxing the small girl from her lap.

Henry's dark eyes darted between his mother and his little sister. He knew when he was being kicked out of the room and with a nod from his Mother he pushed up from the table. "Okay, sure, I'll help you get some mint."

"Excellent, we won't be long darling," she assured gently, brushing her finger tips along Robyn's cheek affectionately before she moved out of reach.

"Henry could you also drop this letter in the mailbox for me please?" Pulling the letter from her pocket, Regina handed it off to her son with an added kiss to the top of his shaggy brown locks in a silent show that everything would be alright. "Thank you darling."

Regina waited until she and her daughter were left alone in the kitchen to sit down at the table, watching the tiny girl through expressionless eyes. "I think we need to have a talk, don't you agree?"

It was the first thing that Regina'd said to her since she'd picked her up from school.

She hadn't even been scolded and yet there the tears were, already obscuring her vision. Lifting her tear misted hazel brown eyes up, it was all Robyn could take when Regina opened her arms in clear invitation to come get a hug. Her face crumpled and the tears began to fall in big fat drops down her cheeks.

"I s-s-sorry-y-y-y Mo-o-o-oommy-y-y-y," she sobbed into the skin of her Mother's neck the instant she was nestled in her warm loving arms.

It broke Regina's heart to listen to the tearful apology, even if it was deserved. Stroking her hand along the length of Robyn's back she gave the little girl a moment to get out all of the fear that had been plaguing her since she had gotten in trouble at school.

"I'm sure you are sweetheart but that doesn't change that what you did was wrong or that we need to talk about it." After another prolonged moment of just holding her baby girl, Regina detached herself from her child just enough so that she could catch her disheartened gaze. "It's not okay to toy with peoples lives like that Robyn. You could have seriously hurt Nicholas today, or any of the children who were out there had you misspoken. I understand that you were being picked on, and that isn't right and I will be calling your teacher tomorrow to discuss that, but it doesn't give you the right to maliciously attack another person- even if it is just the pops."

"He called you mean names Mommy, they all did, and Henry too- they threw a ball at him and said they didn't want to play with a witch. Why is it so bad to be a witch Mommy? Why-"

The trilling of the phone sent a wave of panic to wash down Regina's spine. Her mind was suddenly screaming from a thousand miles away and pain ripped through her heart like wild fire. The conversation with Robyn was instantly forgotten as another slash of pain tore through her chest.

 _Zelena._

With a less than gentle push she removed Robyn from her lap and launched from the chair she'd been sitting in, her feet barely making contact with the floor as she vaulted across the room to get to the phone.

"It's Zelena!" Mal huffed from the back door, out of breath from her own run to get to the house. "She's in trouble."

"I know!" Regina hissed, yanking the phone from its cradle. "Zelena?! What's wrong!? What happened!?"

A harsh sob through the now open line sent Regina's pulse into over drive. Fear gripped her heart.

This was the something she'd been waiting for all evening. Damn that owl.

"Zelena! Answer me!" She bit out, her voice coming out in a harsh snap because of the surmounting fear that was quickly taking control of her senses.

Hiccuped sobs trailed off into a sniffled breaths before Zelena is able to answer. "C-can you c-come get me? I'm sc-cared Gina."

"Tell me where you are."

* * *

Minutes. It had been minutes, maybe even seconds, since she'd been on the phone with her sister getting the location of the seedy little motel she was currently hunkered down in just outside of Charlotte North Carolina where she and Nik had last stopped on their travels.

She'd been coming to surprise Regina but along the way Nik had turned into something she didn't know how to describe, not over the phone at least.

Barreling down the stairs, a new shirt mostly pulled over her head and a pair of jeans that still needed buttoned hastily thrown on, Regina skidded back into the kitchen- snatching her purse from Mal who anxiously waited for her return.

"Will you be alright with the kids?" She husked, out of breath from running up and down the stairs as fast as she could. "I'm taking the first flight out of Boston to Charlotte!"

"Yes of course!" Mal scoffed and picked Robyn up as if that could further the point that she was more than capable of watching her great niece and nephew while her other arm encircled around Henry protectively. "Don't worry about them, I'll bring them with me to the Ostara festival! They'll enjoy themselves! Just go and get to Zelena, bring her home. I can handle the children this weekend."

"What!? No, why can't- can't you just-" The long suffering look Mal directed at her had Regina back peddling reluctantly. "Fine, but no one is dancing naked! Understood!?"

"Whatever you say dear, now go! You have a long drive ahead of you to get to Boston! Hurry and go Regina," she exhaled in a rush, the tension in the room causing her to snap uncharacteristically at her niece.

Nodding firmly, Regina began to turn only to be stopped by a confused call of her name.

"Mommy?"

She whipped back around with a pained wince, her dark eyes bouncing between both her children's worried faces.

"You are both going to go and have _so much fun_ with Auntie Mal and I want to hear all about it when I get back, alright? I promise everything is going to be fine. I just have to go help Aunt Zelena. But I'll be here when you get back on Sunday."

Surging forward, she pressed her lipstick-less lips against Robyn's forehead first quickly followed by Henry's, her voice dropping lower from the force of her nerves. " _I love you both_. Be good and listen to Mal."

One final longing look at her two cherubic faced children and she was gone, running as fast as her legs would allow out the front door and to the car that turned on with flick of her wrist from the porch steps.

 _I'm coming Zelena_ , she thought fervently- willing the thought to transcend the miles between them in hopes that her sister could feel the rush she was under to get to her.

 _I'm coming._


	5. Chapter 5

"Cabin crew please take your seats for landing."

 _Finally_ , Regina thought heatedly. The two hours of flight time had almost killed her.

This was taking too long. With every mile that flew by beneath her she could feel the thrum of her sister's need in her every cell down to the smallest atom.

 _Regina_ , it cried, _where are you? I need you_.

It terrified her to think that by the time she finally did get to Zelena anything could have happened. How long had it been? A three hour drive to Boston, an hour waiting, two hours in the air? This was taking too long and it had Regina's nerves fraying further with every second that passed.

One minute. Two. Five. Ten.

After an agonizing twenty eight minutes went by she was finally on the ground, pushing her way through disembarking passengers like a fan girl at a Bowie concert, elbowing her way through the terminal. She slipped her way into gaps and even managed to bump head long into someone in her pursuit of the exit.

It took her another five minutes once she was outside to hail a cab, all the while her mind kept a running tab of the numbers. Her traitorous thoughts slipping in the occasional image of how she would find her big sister. Was she bleeding? Did he hit her? Was this just an alcohol induced fight?

Her mind spun endlessly round and round between mental calculations and grotesque imagery.

"Do you think you could possibly drive a little _faster_? I _have_ to get to my sister," she stressed through clenched teeth, her fingers drumming anxiously against her knee.

The cab driver grunted noncommittally at her but did seem to speed up as he drove down the sleepy streets of Charlotte. Perhaps her desperation was more apparent than she thought, he did keep glancing at her in his rear view mirror as though she were crazy and would leap forward to attack him at any given moment.

 _Good. Let him think that_ , she griped to herself, _anything to get me to Zelena faster_.

When the glow of the motel's vacancy sign came into view her heart began to race in double time, thundering loudly in her ears.

She was there. Finally.

 _I'm here_ , she willed Zelena to feel through the tether of their souls, _I'm coming for you_.

"Thank you," she muttered while shoving money at the man without turning to look back, her dark gaze focused solely on the dimly lit motel. Regina's heart was in her throat as she ran across the darkened parking lot, taking the nearest stairs to the second floor of the seedy little motel two at a time.

She struggled to remain focused.

 _Think_ , she scolded herself over the growing apprehension in her chest. What were the directions that Zelena had given her before they hung up earlier?

 _Second floor. Room 108. Overlooking the pool._

Relief swelled in her chest when the door she wanted came into view. Casting her dark gaze around the seemingly deserted motel, she didn't bother to knock, instead she reached for the knob and thanked any deity with ears that the door swung open.

"Zelena?"

"Regina!"

"Oh thank god, I've been so worried! I tried to get here as soon as I could!"

Rushing to her sister's side, Regina dropped to her knees, her trembling hands already in motion to cup Zelena's face but the hideous discoloration around her slightly distended left eye gave her pause. He had laid hands on her sister. Malice burned through Regina's veins and hardened her resolve more than ever. "Let's go. Get your shoes on, I'll take your bag."

* * *

"I can't _believe_ he hit me! The bastard- he just- _fuck_ Regina!" Zelena hissed, staggering as they made their way through the parking lot. The events of the last twenty four hours felt like a nightmare. The furious shouting, the push that turned into so much more.

It had been a bad move to let Nik talk her into allowing him to come with her up to see her family. They'd been fighting about her leaving him for days before hand and everything had just continued to build up until it exploded in a haze of booze and painful blows.

She could see the inevitable lead up now that it had already taken place but at the time it had taken her by complete surprise.

How could she've been so stupid? He'd threatened her and she took it.

Gripping the handle of her sister's duffle bag, Regina grunted. "Let's just get out of here, you can tell me all about it once we're at the airport."

"Right, okay, you're right," Zelena conceded, wringing her hands together only to stop dead in her tracks. "Wait! _Shit_! Daddy's ring!" She held up her hand the decades old ring usually adorned only to find pale fingers and an even paler band around her index finger. "Regina I have to go get it. I left in the bathroom I think. Shit, _I can't leave it_ , it was Daddy's."

Regina watched pain and uncertainty dance across Zelena's face. Heaving a heavy sigh, she reluctantly flung her free arm back towards the motel. "Fine but make it quick. We need to get out of here. I don't have a good feeling about lingering any longer than we already have."

"Okay, I'll be just a minute. Stay here and I'll be right back," the redhead breathed and rounded back the way they had just come, nearly running in her haste.

The seconds ticked by agonizingly slow.

Was it the creepiness of being in a nearly pitch dark parking lot alone in a terrible part of town or was it because she felt they were on borrowed time that had her so on edge? At some point the man who'd marked her sister up had to return didn't he? Regina wasn't certain of anything, but what she was sure of was that the awful feeling in the pit of her stomach continued to grow until she felt physically ill with unease.

The sound of feet scuffing the asphalt behind her had her whipping around, startled. Any relief she felt at seeing the bright shock of her sister's fiery red hair was short lived when her dark gaze landed on the man at her side.

"I'm sorry Gina, he came in when I was leaving-" hissing painfully, Zelena winced as Nik pulled her roughly against his side. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…"

"So _this_ is the illusive sister we were heading to see? She does exist," he drawled and forced Zelena to move closer to his car parked a few feet away.

Regina clenched her teeth to the point of pain. " Yes. _I exist_. Now if you don't mind, we'll be leaving, Zelena…"

"Now, now, now." Nik laughed darkly, reaching behind his back to withdraw a gun from the waistband of his pants. "Get in the car, or this _may_ have to get ugly. And that would be unfortunate because I am feeling _very_ into sisters right now," he drunkenly leered, nodding his head toward the car to further prompt the brunette to move.

* * *

Headlights glowed brightly in a far steadier stream than Regina had anticipated to see at a little after four in the morning on the I-81 going North. The temptation to pull the old Cadillac behemoth across the grassy median and into the traffic going South had been hard to resist after the first forty minutes of driving with the deranged drunk in the back seat giving them unwanted mythology lessons between fondling her sister and demanding they join his drinking party.

The only thing that kept her from jerking the steering wheel into a hard left was the guilt she felt over possibly killing the other driver she would no doubt plow into, not to mention thoughts of her children who were probably having the time of their lives dancing around a bonfire out in the middle of some field upstate. Those thoughts kept her focused- fingers gripped tight as a sign passed by in a blur declaring they'd just entered the town of Roanoke Virginia.

Nik swallowed a large swig of the dark amber liquor he'd found discarded on the floor and leaned over the front seat, offering the bottle to Regina with a tap to her arm. "C'mon, you must be getting thirsty by now _Gina_."

Regina's cheek twitched in her silent rage, choosing to not acknowledge the man who was holding them hostage in his decrepit old car.

Chuckling, he settled back against the worn leather seats, an arm finding its way around Zelena's shoulders to pull her in tight. "Why the long faces? Alright, here why don't I tell you another story eh? About the old world."

"Niky, please…" Zelena's normally confident voice wavered in distress.

He flicked a wrist dismissively, shifting his weight around so that he could dislodge the gun that he'd tucked back into the waist of his pants and brought it back to his lap where he tapped the barrel against his thigh absently.

"Centuries ago in a once small village in Eleusis Greece," he began with a cold smirk, "there was a following of people who worshiped the benevolent god Hades in hopes they could gain a better understanding about life after death. These people, the cult of Hades, would seek knowledge in the depths of a cave they believed to be the portal the souls of the departed would use to slip through on their journey to the underworld. They would _beat_ -" he emphasized the word with a hard slap of the gun against the back of the front seats, smirking at the flinch that came from the woman driving as well as the one tucked into his side. "-their fists against the ground to signal to Hades that they were there."

 _Regina_ , the brunette heard whispered through her mind. _Gina listen, in the side of my bag is a vial of ground hemlock- find it and put some in his drink and it'll knock him out._

With as casual a look as she could muster, Regina glanced into the rearview mirror to catch Zelena's steady gaze. A single nod from the redhead was enough to make her lips twitch in an almost smile.

They had a plan.

Slyly, Regina eased her hand into the canvas bag beside her. Her fingers groped around for the smooth bottle that would be their freedom. She had to work to suppress the sigh of relief when the tips of her fingers finally brushed against cool glass between layers of fabric.

"It was also said that certain sacrifices would also be preformed in honor of the great god. Ritual sacrifice has always had it's place in history, something our world is severely lacking. At times the offering of black sheep just wasn't enough so they would take the supple, young oracles," Nik intoned as he shifted his weight to further press Zelena against the backseat, the barrel of his gun finding its home against her carotid artery, "and they would slash them across the major arteries like ribbons- bleeding them out over a pit in the ground to appease their lord."

"…Nik, please."

"It was considered a great honor," he cooed, his tigger finger tightening ever so slightly.

" _HEY! HEY!"_ Regina's harsh shout filled the car for the first time since he'd forced her to start driving up the interstate. " _GET OFF HER YOU SICK FREAK!_ " She continued to scream, swatting an arm back to try and pry him away from her sister. Her previous concern of plowing into other drivers was lost in the wake of the threat to her sister's life.

" _Whoa!_ Watch the road!" Nik lashed out. His body reeled away from Zelena as the car swerved hard to the right, knocking him momentarily off balance. " _WATCH THE ROAD!_ "

" _Get the fuck off my sister you asshole!_ " She shrieked between fearful pants, her voice raising to a painful octave in her terror. Part of her wanted to break down from the fear that coiled around her thundering heart but the anger that began to seep through her veins kept her focused, they still had a plan to follow through with. "Give me- _give me the god damn bottle_ , Nik. _GIVE ME. THE BOTTLE! NIK!_ "

Passing the half empty bottle of Metaxa to her, he chuckled breathily. "Alright, alright, We can all be good sports here. Let's all calm down and have a drink. Atta girl."

Regina pressed the bottle to her lips and sucked down a mouthful of the weird tasting brandy before settling it between her legs. With her eyes trained forward, she shakily uncorked the vial hidden by her thigh and tipped in a heaping dose of the granulated herb.

This would work. This _had_ to work.

A smirk tugged at the corner of her lips as she willed the dark liquid to swirl around in the bottle, effectively mixing in the powerful sedative into the drink. Catching Zelena's eyes in the mirror once more, Regina nodded a small firm nod.

 _It's done_ , she thought, _now to get him to drink it_.

* * *

It hadn't been hard to goad the intoxicated man into drinking more. Simply handing the bottle back to him had sufficed initially.

As the time wore on, both women surreptitiously watched the heavy lidded look that slowly began to wash across his expression. One eye fluttered closed slowly followed by the other but neither woman could breathe for fear this wouldn't last, so they sat in silence as mile after mile passed under them.

The sky began to lighten with the approach of dawn and not long after the sign for Harrisonburg appeared, Regina glanced up at the mirror, catching pensive blue eyes. "We're going to need to stop for gas and I really need to pee," she rasped in a low whisper.

"Do we have to?"

" _Yes_ Zelena, we _have_ to."

Breathing out a heavy sigh, Zelena nodded. "Just make it fast, I don't know how long he'll be out for," she said, her gaze landing on the motionless man leaning against the opposite door.

Regina pulled off the interstate and headed for the first Royal gas station she could find.

It felt good to step out of the car after being cooped up for so long. Stretching her legs out, she looked over her at Zelena who emerged from the back seat. "Are you okay?"

Zelena remained silent, moving her hips from side to side and stretching her arms above her head. After her stretch, she closed the distance between them and latched onto her sister, holding her tightly to her chest.

"Thank you," she breathed, her voice thick with sincerity. "Thank you for coming to get me. I didn't mean for this to-"

"I know," Regina interrupted, pulling back from the hug so that she could get a look at her sister's face, her hand moving like it wanted to cup her cheek but stopped short and simply hovered over the discoloration of her bruised eye. "Look, I'm going to go inside and use the restroom, get us some coffee and pay for the gas. Why don't you fill the tank and then see if you can pull him out of the car and we can just leave him here. Once we're close to Storybrooke I'll call us a cab and we can leave his car in Camden, okay?"

"Okay. Yeah, that sounds like a good plan," Zelena woodenly nodded, her eyes finding their way back to the car. "Okay, go. I'll work on getting him out when I'm done pumping."

Regina took her time in the restroom, washing her face along with her hands. It had been a long night and was proving to be an even longer day with at least another twelve hours of driving ahead of them. As she walked to the coffee counter she marveled at how she hadn't cracked under the pressure yet.

This was by far the scariest thing she'd been forced to endure yet, and that said a lot considering she laid in bed wide awake most nights terrified of dying alone.

With two cups of steaming coffee, some waters and a few snacks to tide them over until they reached home, Regina exited the small convenience store and made her way back to the car. The wide eyed look of panic on her big sister's face stopped her when she approached the driver side door.

"What? What's wrong? Did he wake up?" She asked in a rush, moving to sit the cardboard drink container on the roof of the car.

Zelena hurried to Regina's side, grabbing her arm forcefully, her voice coming out in a frantic whisper, "How much hemlock did you put in that goddamn bottle Regina!? He's not breathing! _I think he's dead_!"

" _ **WHAT!?**_ "

* * *

 **AN:** So the Cult of Hades is an actual thing but they didn't (that I know of via research) do ritualistic human sacrifice, that was all me for the sake of the story. Oh, and please, do not actually find-grind-and consume hemlock. It IS poisonous and can be very harmful if ingested. These are my PSA's for today: don't sacrifice people in the back of cars or caves and don't make hemlock tea. ;)


	6. Chapter 6

Regina sat white knuckled behind the steering wheel, her shoulders hunched defensively, her eyes glaring forward at the road that rushed by them at 70 miles an hour. She hadn't spoken to her sister since she'd ordered her to get back into the car before high tailing it away from the sleepy gas station in Harrisonburg with the lifeless body of her ex-boyfriend in the back seat.

What the hell where they going to do!?

"Regina? We need to talk about this." Zelena said, breaking the tense silence that had stretched on for the last few hours as mile after mile brought them closer to home.

Gritting her teeth, the brunette shook her head. "Nothing to talk about. When we get to town we are going straight to the police."

"And what? Tell them that you poisoned him out of self defense?! Sorry officers I was simply trying to knock him out and forgot my measuring spoon in my other jacket, won't make that mistake again! _Please_! Be logical! We _can't_ go to the police!"

" _Yes_! We _can_! And that's _exactly_ what we tell them. That it was self defense because that's what it was! He had a fucking _gun_ to you!"

Zelena's palm slapped against her forehead and made her wince as the vibration radiated through her aching eye socket. "That'll _never_ hold up. _We've stolen his car_! If we were going to go to the police we should've done it hours ago Regina! We've just driven across states with a dead body in the back seat! We'll go to jail if we go to the police now!"

" _I'm not going to jail_. I can't." Regina bit out, frustration oozing from her in waves. "God, why couldn't you have just picked a normal boyfriend Zelena?! Is that so _fucking hard_!?"

" _I KNOW ALRIGHT!"_ The titan haired woman snapped back, her own nerves seeping into her biting tone. "I promise if we get out of this I will have a normal life okay?! No more partying, no more wild boyfriends- babies, PTA, baking, all of it- alright!? Just give me a freaking break!"

Regina's anger erupted as she turned her head to gape at Zelena, her dark eyes flashing. " _I HAVE NORMAL ZELENA_! _I HAVE A FAMILY._ _I'M ACTUALLY ON THE PTA_! And now look at the mess _you_ dragged _me_ into!"

Holding up her hands, Zelena shrank back in her seat guiltily. "Look, I'm sorry. I am _so_ incredibly sorry Regina. We'll figure it out. What if… What if we went to Auntie? Mal would know what to do! A spell, something- anything! Didn't you say you went to her to bring Daniel back?! She said she _wouldn't_ not that she _couldn't_ , right?"

"I did, but she refused and she was right. That's seriously dark magic Zelena. If she had brought him back he wouldn't have been Daniel. She won't bring Nik back and for good reason," she growled, shaking her head at even the thought of Mal bringing back the lord of the dead behind them.

Zelena turned in her seat to fully face her sister, her eyes going wide. "Good reason!? Regina, bringing him back is the _only_ way we get out of this mess! I don't care what he comes back as! As long as he comes back long enough to kick his ass back out!"

"No," Regina shook her head, refusing to look away from the road. "No, there _has_ to be another way."

" _There isn't_! This is what we're going to do. You can either help me or stand back and watch, but I'm bringing him back tonight and I'm fixing this mess I got us into."

With firm resolution, Zelena turned back to face the road, folding her arms petulantly across her chest. She was going to fix this with or without Regina's help.

* * *

Through town after town and state after state, the sight of Auntie Mal's estate coming up was a welcomed sight at the end of an excruciatingly long day of driving.

Pulling to a stop, Regina lingered behind the wheel, too afraid to get out. As soon as she stepped out of that car she knew they would be on a path that there was no coming back from.

While driving they'd lightly discussed in more detail what they would be doing, and if this was indeed- a good idea. Still undecided, Regina glanced at her sister, her dark eyes trying to read Zelena's face in the fading twilight. "I think we should wait to move him until it's darker. I know we're on the edge of town but… If someone were to see us moving what looked like a body."

"God, could you imagine someone like Mary Margaret Blanchard getting an eyeful of us hauling in a body in through the backdoor?" Zelena scoffed out a laugh that didn't hold enough humor to make it believable. She was just as worried as her sister was but unlike the brunette beside her she was fully committed to seeing this through. "She'd never shut up about it. It would be the toad incident from fifth grade all over again."

"Don't even joke about that. She's the head of the PTA. She barely tolerates me at the meetings as it is," she solemnly answered. Drawing in a deep breath, Regina reluctantly opened her door and stepped out into the chilly evening air, wrapping her arms tightly around herself to ward off the down right frigid breeze that kicked off of the ocean near by.

Despite it being late March the temperatures were still less than desirable in the sleepy town of Storybrooke, dipping into the low twenties at night at best and the teens to lower at its worst.

"We'll go inside and get everything we need together then come out and get him," she continued once Zelena stepped out from the passenger side.

The only answer she got in return was a nod and that was fine enough for her.

This whole situation was nothing more than a nightmare. A nightmare that Regina repeatedly wished she would wake from as she moved through the house collecting Mal's leather bound grimoire and a few candles along the way back to the kitchen where she found Zelena lingering.

"Can I… What do we need?"

Dropping the time worn volume on the table, Regina flipped carefully through the aged pages until she found the one she remembered stumbling upon just after her Mother died. Her eyes skimmed across components that constituted the spell- some of which she'd never laid hands on in the short years she'd practiced.

"This is a very complex casting Zelena, I'm not even sure we have some of these herbs on hand, I'll have to check. While I'm looking I need you to get," she paused to read and barely suppressed a shudder. "We need two of Auntie's casting needles and something white to draw a star on his chest."

"I don't want to know why we need the needles," the redhead groaned but backed away from the table nonetheless.

"You really don't. Now hurry, it's not like we can keep him in the back of the car forever."

"Yeah, you're right… And Regina?"

The gentle tone had Regina looking over her shoulder at her sister, her soft smile saying everything before the words even formed. "Thank me when this is over."

"Okay."

* * *

By the time the brunette returned, her arms loaded with a grinding mortar, herbs, and twine, the world outside had darkened to a near pitch. Perfect for moving a body.

 _God, what has my life become?_ Regina thought as she unloaded the things from her arms and set about preparing the smudge sticks required for the spell.

"Uh, hey- is this okay?"

Zelena's voice pulled her from her thoughts and Regina looked up from braiding together the dried stalks of wheat and sage to see what she was talking about.

"It's all I could find that was white," she shifted awkwardly towards the table, a bottle of white glitter glue pinched between her fingers.

It was such a stark contrast to what they were preparing to do. Of course all she could find was glitter glue. An edge of hysteria crept into her short burst of laughter before she pulled herself together again.

Now was not the time to lose it.

Focus.

"That should be fine. Maybe the glitter will add an element of innocence," she offered with a hesitant smile. Anything pure and innocent would be welcomed right about now considering the amount of dark magic they would be summoning.

Finishing off the last bundle, Regina carefully tied the dried groundsel and knotweed together and placed it beside the first tied bundle, and rubbed her hands together. "I guess we should…"

"Yeah, I guess we… Should…" Zelena agreed, casting a glance toward the backdoor as though she could see the car through the frosted glass and wood. With a resigned sigh she straightened her back, held her head high, and marched out of the kitchen with purpose.

This was her mess and she'd damn sure be bearing the brunt of it she decided.

Regina followed silently behind her sister all the way down the moonlit path. It wasn't until the redhead began to grunt did she step in to help lift the dead weight of Nik from the backseat.

"God he weighs a ton!" Regina groused through tightly ground teeth.

Zelena's strained grunt of 'yeah the fat fuck better be grateful for this, the asshole' made her snort despite the absurdity of what they were in the process of doing.

They were carrying a body.

A dead body.

The dead body of her sister's soon to be ex-boyfriend up their Auntie's back stairs to try and resurrect him on the kitchen table.

The kitchen table her kids had breakfast at every morning…

Just another Saturday night of sibling bonding at the Mills house.

Clearly.

 _This is so messed up_.

"Okay, you unbutton his shirt and make the star in the center of his chest, I'll start lighting the candles."

"I feel there should be an Edward Cullen joke in there somewhere…"

Bent over a candle, her lips parted in preparation to light the wick, Regina shot her sister a stern look. "Zelena."

"Right, divesting and applying a star. On it sis," Zelena grinned, setting to her task without another word, unbuttoning Nik's shirt with fingers that barely trembled now.

With every candle Regina breathed to life the thicker the tension grew in the dimly lit kitchen. Shadows danced along the walls as outside thunder rumbled in the distance, adding to the eeriness inside.

Clearing her throat she moved to stand across from Zelena, offering her one of the needles without looking up from the pages of the grimoire. "We have to burn the smudge sticks together, sweeping the smoke in counter clockwise motions over the chest. Once they're burned through we pierce the needles through the sides of his eyes and repeat the incantation until he rises."

Blue eyes were blown wide in horror. "We… Pierce…"

"His eyes, yes. I told you, this is dark magic, it won't be pretty. It also says that a blood offering could be used to strengthen the invocation but I don't feel comfortable doing that, do you?"

"… This is…"

"A lot, I know. It's not like anything Auntie taught us. Are you absolutely _sure_ you want to do this?"

Zelena squared her shoulders and dawned a look of certainty, nodding her head firmly. "Yes. We don't have any other options and… I'll do the blood offering."

"Zelena, I'm not so sure that's a good idea," Regina worried, chewing on plump lower lip. "I don't know the laws of blood magic, it could have serious ramifications."

"I'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Right now if me squeezing out a little blood gets us results I'll do it," she said resolutely. Focused on twisting open the cap to the glitter glue, the redhead dutifully ignored the wary look her sister sent her way as she traced thick sparkling lines alone the plains of his chest. "Now what Gina?"

Pursing her lips, Regina picked up the smudge sticks, twiddling them between her fingers nervously. "We focus. Deep even breathing, we center our thoughts on Manon, I burn the smudge sticks and then we chant 'darkness unbound, a soul to be found, oh Manon, return him to me' while we pierce his eyes and continue chanting until he wakes up- _if_ he wakes up."

A shock of light illuminated the room and a burst of thunder rattled the windows, startling the two women more then they already were.

"Thanks for that mother nature," Zelena grumbled under her breath, taking the needle offered to her. "So, for the blood…"

Breathing out a heavy sigh, Regina nodded to the needle she just handed over. "Prick your finger hard enough to bleed and rub it against each end of these," she said, waving the dried bundles of herbs over Nik's body.

Poising the needle against the pad of her index finger, blue eyes saught out dark and held their gaze. "Here goes nothing Sis."

A small hiss is all Zelena allowed to escape her parted lips. Now wasn't the time to dwell on the ache of her finger.

She pressed her thumb just below the perforated skin, drawing forth a growing bubble of crimson that she dabbed against the ends of the bundles Regina held out.

With the blood applied, Regina hesitated only a moment, did they really want to do this?

Encouraged by a small nod from her sister, she plunged the smudge sticks into the flame of one of the candles that surround Nik's lifeless body. The thick smell of burning herbs and copper filled the room with every rotation Regina's arms made.

In a matter of minutes smoke filled the space above the body and they were left holding their Aunt's long casting needles poised beside Nik's vacant eyes. It was now or never. There was no turning back.

" _Darkness unbound, a soul to be found, oh Manon, return him to me._ "

Over and over again the words tumbled from their lips, picking up in pace at a dizzying rate until the air around them thrummed with magic.

Catching her sister's wild eyes, Regina nodded once, signaling it was time. Two hands thrust forward in sync, lancing the playable membrane of Nik's eye with none of the fear that had plagued them since the start of the casting.

Thunder cracked menacingly over head, nearly drowning out the ominous hiss that ripped through the body- the body that had thus far laid dormant- as it bolted upright, scaring both women to the point of screaming. They launched away from the table in horrified amazement, their bodies trembling wildly.

They'd done it. They had brought Nik back.


	7. Chapter 7

"Nik?" Zelena tentatively asked, inching forward cautiously.

After the longest drawn out pause in the history of the universe, everything exploded into a fit of manic shouts, grasping hands that clasped tightly around a pale column of skin, followed by more hysterical shouts to _stop_.

Regina didn't know how it happened.

One minute she stood marveling at the power of their magic and the next the man with the needles still protruding from his eyes was attacking her sister… again.

It had been pure instinct to pick up the heavy cast iron pan from its place on top of the stove.

And she certainly hadn't meant to hit him so many times. It was an accident. She was terrified and only had thoughts of getting the deranged man off of her sister.

But regardless of fear and best intentions, there she stood in the cold pelting rain with the twice dead body of Nik Thanos at her feet. His lifeless corpse nestled in the muddy hole she and her sister hastily dug in the back garden.

 _What do we do now_ , her mind reeled, straining to find a way out of this mess that continued to grow around them.

"I… I'm- I'm sorry Regina. I didn't… I'm sorry about _all_ of this. _So_ sorry." Zelena panted, her face streaked with mud, make up, and tears that could be excused as rain. "I didn't think it would turn out like this. _It wasn't suppose to turn out like this_!"

"It's not your fault. You didn't know that would happen. Let's… Let's just get inside." She said and wrapped an arm around her big sister's waist, guiding her toward the house numbly. "I'll make us some tea. Come on."

* * *

The clean up process had been a silent affair as the two worked to rid the home of any sign of their transgressions. Three cups of tea and a couple of tylenol pms later and both sisters had finally settled down to sleep away the fear and guilt that gripped at them.

Regina stirred first. Stretching her legs out only to bump into another set of legs, she froze, for a moment forgetting the events that lead to Zelena curling in bed with her the night before.

Her eye cracked open slowly, the sight of fiery red hair filled her heart with a sense of hope only to have it washed away as flashes of Nik, the ritual, and the shoddy lawn job that followed came rushing back to the forefront of her mind.

 _Shit. What are we going to do_? Her mind panicked while it unhelpfully pulled up images of herself in a bright orange jumpsuit and chains at her wrists and ankles.

They'd killed a man. Twice.

They were murderers.

Or rather _she_ was a murderer. Zelena hadn't actually been the one to poison him nor slam the heavy skillet against the back of his cranium. That was all her. God. She'd _killed_ someone.

Any more panicked musings on the issue were drowned out by the sound of the front door slamming followed by loud shouts of 'Moooooom! We're hooooome!'

For the first time in her life she didn't want to be a mom, not now, not after what she'd done. She didn't want this to be any part of her reality.

How had her life come to this? A widow by thirty, a two time murderer of the same man, and now she was being thrown back into the deep end of being a full time single parent while juggling the biggest secret of her existence. It sounded like a daytime soap opera. A really _terrible_ daytime soap opera.

"Mommy! I bringed you a flower crown!"

Regina heard her daughter call from the stairway as she slipped out of bed, heading to the door to try and hold back her hoard of elephants from thundering into the bedroom.

"Robyn! What if she's sleeping?! You're gonna wake her up! Stop shouting!" Henry's sharp voice sounded behind his sister's, his foot falls landing just as loudly as the little girl's on the creaky floor boards.

Stepping into the doorway, Regina smiled at the happy faces she was greeted with. The sight of them looking so cheerful gave her heart a tug of gratitude towards her Aunt. They'd had fun. They'd needed that. They needed to have a moment to just be kids who actually fit in for a change.

"MOMMY!" Robyn screeched, throwing herself into her Mother's waiting arms with a delighted giggle. "I missed-ed you!"

"Hello my love," Regina breathed and squatted down to be more level with her daughter, her hands instantly moving to brush her strawberry curls from her cherubic face. "Did you have a wonderful time? Did you Henry?" Her warm eyes moved up to catch her son's, reaching out to pull him into the hug too.

"I danced nekkid by a fire Mommy! It wasn't even cold!" The pint sized bundle of excitement enthused, placing a flower crown that had seen better days atop her Mother's head now that she could reach.

Henry rolled his eyes but a hint of a grin tugged at his lips as he slipped into the hug. His nose nuzzled into the soft dark locks along his Mother's neck, breathing her in deeply before he pulled back to grin at her, his dark eyes sparkling.

"I didn't dance naked but it was a lot of fun Mom! I wish you came too. There was singing and everyone had a really big dinner together and we gotta sleep in tents! Auntie said that we can go again in winter but that we won't sleep outside for that one. It's up in cabins in the woods and there'll be snow! Will you come to that one with us Mom?!"

Schooling her features into a kind smile, Regina fought the knee jerk reaction to get upset that at least one of her offspring went frolicking through a field in the buff in the middle of upstate Maine with a group of strangers.

 _They had fun_ , she reminded herself, _that's all that matters. They enjoyed it. Let it go_.

"Mmm, we'll have to see. Winter is a long ways away Henry." She softly rasped, pressing a kiss to his temple before turning her warm gaze back to Robyn. "I have a surprise for you both but you must try and be quiet. She's very tired."

Slowly rising to her feet she carefully guided the two curious children into her bedroom, nodding towards the rumpled bed that still held the sleeping form of her sister, she whispered, "that's your Aunt Zelena. She'd going to be staying with us for a while. I want you to be gentle with her. She has an ouch around her eye that needs to heal."

Two dramatic gasps broke the silence of the room and effectively startle the sleeping redhead from her slumber.

"Regi- wha-"

" _AUNTIE ZELENA_!"

" _AUNT ZEE_!"

A chorus of shouts erupt from the two person herd of elephants that sprung into motion, throwing themselves at the groggy woman in bed with more enthusiasm than a shoe lover at a DSW Labor Day sale.

It didn't take long for Zelena to realize what was happening and soon the room was filled with laughter and excited conversation between herself and the niece and nephew she'd never met before while Regina leaned against the door frame and watched the moment unfold with a lightness in her heart.

"Well, well. That's not a sight I thought I would ever see in my life time," Mal drawled from behind her niece, slipping an arm around her waist to give her a small squeeze of greeting. "Is everything handled?"

Guilt and fear surge up in Regina for a fleeting second before she forced herself to come back to the moment at hand. Nik was gone. No one would know. She was with her family. They were happy. That was all that mattered.

"We had some problems along the way but we took care of them."

"Good, good," The older woman said and removed herself from the small show of affection, holding out a hand to the brunette. "Care to help me in the kitchen? I feel this calls for cupcakes."

The sheer innocence of the statement had Regina laughing heartily. "I'd love to Auntie. Can we make spice cakes? I feel like cinnamon today."

"Of course darling," Mal grinned, pleased to see her niece looking so at ease. "I think a special day requires special cupcakes and spice cakes fit that bill perfectly my girl."

* * *

The following days passed uneventfully apart for a joy ride up to Boston to retrieve the car that still sat in the airport parking lot.

It took some time for the chaos of Zelena coming to stay with them to die down but once the every day routine of school and work got underway everyone settled back into their usual roles with the addition of a redhead tailing close behind.

Well, everyone except for Regina.

By the time Friday rolled around Zelena was absolutely sure that her sister's steadily growing moodiness was because of her.

"Hey, Ruby…" She started hesitantly and took a sip of her coffee while covertly keeping an eye on her scowling little sister behind the counter.

The leggy brunette paused in wiping down the the table she was bussing on that quiet Friday afternoon to look up, a finely plucked eyebrow curiously raised. "Yeah?"

Zelena's head nodded in Regina's direction discreetly- nothing that would give her away should the tense younger woman look up. "Did I do something to piss her off? She hasn't said a word since telling me to get the hell out of her kitchen when I got here."

Ruby snorted under her breath. She cast a quick glance at her friend turned boss then back to Zelena, shaking her head. "Nah, it's the last Friday of the month. For once this has nothing to do with you Zee."

"Am I suppose to know what that means?"

Rolling her eyes, Ruby snickered and took the seat directly across from her second favorite ginger (Robyn being her first).

"On the last Friday of the month they have a PTA meeting at the elementary school and every end of the month your sister gets crabbier and crabbier until it's over."

Zelena's eyebrow shot up questioningly, a silent 'duh' rippling through the undercurrent of her tone. "If she hates it so much why does she go?"

"It's not that she hates being in the PTA," Ruby said shaking her head again. "It's more the other Moms who make it a nightmare for her. None of them trust her because of the whole witch thing. It was okay-ish when Daniel was, well, ya know- _here_ , but now? You know how small minded this town is. They reject anything that's different. And no offense but your family is pretty damn different, at least in the whole being bad ass witches area."

Anger coiled in the pit of Zelena's stomach at the thought of a group of sweater clad Moms treating her hard working sister like trash just because of something as stupid as a little bit of magic. Magic that the younger Mills woman refused to use. Who the hell did they think they were?! They weren't children anymore, they were all adults here!

"Ruby, I'm going to be gone for the rest of the day, could you please lock up when you're done with your shift?" The brunette they'd been talking about asked as she pulled her purse over her shoulder.

Ruby's smile came easily, like the two women hadn't been talking about her at all. "Sure thing Regina. Have a good night. Oh! And tell Henry that Forest wants to have a sleep over soon. A boys camp out in the backyard with Graham once it's a little warmer."

A ghost of a smile tugged at one side of Regina's lips. "I'll let him know. Thank you Ruby."

Regina was halfway out the door when Zelena called out to her.

"Hey! Wait for me!"

Rolling her eyes, she didn't pause to wait for her sister to join her on the sidewalk though she did slow her pace so that the older woman could catch up with her easily enough.

"What are you doing Zelena?" She asked despondently, pulling her arms across chest defensively in preparation for the battle that faced her.

God she hated these meetings. It was like high school all over again. Only now it wasn't someone leaving the bio lab frogs in her locker, it was being excluded from things like the fall carnival and upcoming field trips.

"Spending time with my sister?" The older woman grinned with a skip to her step.

All Regina could do was shoot the redhead a skeptical look as they crossed the street towards the only elementary school in the small town.

" _What_?! Honestly! I just want to spend some time with you Regina. What better time then at a function we can snicker and poke fun at all the frumpy old moms in matching cardies?"

Rolling her eyes, the brunette couldn't help but snort at the image of the last PTA meeting where a few of the moms did indeed have similar looking sweater sets.

"Fine but promise me you'll stay out of the business end. You may find this to be nothing but a big joke but these women have children who go to school with mine. I need them to continue to tolerate us. _Please_."

Zelena heaved a long suffering sigh, her heel covered feet clacking against the stone steps that led up to the school's main entrance. "Fiiiiine, if you insist. You act as though I'm here to make your life a living hell ya know, I'm honestly not. I know how to behave myself thank you."

"Do you?" Regina challenged with an arched brow and a smirk.

It was no secret that Zelena was the brazen one in their family. A title the woman held with great pride most days.

But before the two could get into Zelena's inability to not cause mass destruction wherever she went further they reached the small classroom with the brightly colored rugs depicting streets, states, and one in the front of the room clearly intended for circle time.

The commotion of the door opening paired with Zelena's scoff drew every set of eyes to them like moths to a flame. Regina's cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"Oh, Regina. I didn't know you'd be coming so we got an early start to the meeting," the pixie haired Mary Margaret Blanchard-Nolan remarked from her position at the head of the small assembly of women who looked on scornfully from their seats at the tiny round tables they sat at. "You've missed the handing out of the new PTA directory and sign ups for the spring bake sale. I'm afraid all of those positions have been assigned and we won't be needing you for that."

Mary Margaret didn't look sorry at all though, a fact that neither Mills missed.

"We were just about to begin discussing movie night."

With a final withering glare at her sister, Regina slunk to the back of the classroom and took a seat after taking the hand out of the new directory from a less than enthused Marian Locksley.

A loud snap at the front of the room drew her dark eyes up and she watched Mary Margaret bring her thumb to her mouth, pain etched deep on her features. It didn't take a lot of thought to understand that the woman's binder rings had snapped closed on her finger.

"Oops," Zelena whispered under her breath with a smirk and took a seat beside her little sis. "It slipped."

Regina couldn't hold back her snort if she tried. Covering her quickly forming smirk with her hand, she dutifully ignored the glances cast their way and got down to taking notes of her own about the upcoming events around the school.

 _Okay, maybe having Zelena come along wasn't such a bad idea after all_ , she mused.

* * *

After the meeting was finished Regina sent Zelena home while she waited for the kids to get out of school.

She had an hour until Henry and Robyn were done for the day and she could use the time alone. A quick trip to the grocery store and some time to just mull over the past few days was what she desperately needed.

Had it really only been a week since she went rushing to her sisters aid? Since they had...

No.

She couldn't even think about it.

She couldn't think about the car that was still parked at their home with the Florida license plates. She couldn't think about the patch of ground near the flower garden that looked a little off compared to the rest of the lawn despite their best efforts.

She couldn't think about any of it.

She was so lost in thought about not thinking about things that the sound of the back door of the car opening made her jump.

"Hi Mommy!" Robyn's perky voice filled the back of the car with its sing songy inflection that came with her age.

A genuine smile pulled at her lips and warmed her dark eyes as she turned in her seat to look back at the little girl who was already buckling herself into her booster seat. "And hello to you too baby! How was your day?"

" _Booooooring_! I think I'm done goin' ta school Mommy. Auntie Mal's right, my teacher doesn't know _nothin_!"

The brunette hadn't expected that kind of answer, the generic 'it was okay' more along the lines of what she figured she'd be getting, and because of that frankness from her not so tiny tot a hard burst of laughter slipped from lips before she could stop herself. She quickly covered her mouth with her hand to keep back any more chuckles that wanted to escape. It wasn't like she was particularly _wrong_ in that assessment. Her teacher, Ms. Astrid, was fairly bland she had to admit.

"What's so funny?" Henry asked as he too climbed into the car, kicking his backpack down below his feet.

"Oh nothing sweetheart. Just your sister being her usual uncouth self. How was _your_ day? Hopefully it was better than Robyn's," she chuckled with a glance in the rear view to wink at her little curly haired spitfire.

Henry shrugged his shoulders and looked out the window at the scenery passing by on their way home. "It was fine. I think I passed my spelling test?"

"That's wonderful Henry! I think that calls for a celebration tonight don't you? I picked up things to make pizzas for dinner. What should we have for dessert?"

" _APPLE TURNOVERS_!" Both children shouted in unison before dissolving into excited chatter about who got to help with what and most importantly who got to lick the bowl of apple cinnamon-y goodness when they were done.

Listening to her children's playful bickering, Regina pulled onto the single lane road that lead to their home with a soft smile that faded the second she noticed the unfamiliar car parked beside Nik's and the blonde woman who was peering at the front bumper.

She slowed the car to a stop a few feet back from the parked cars and cautiously got out, her eyes wary.

" _Moooom_! Robyn hit me because she lost at paper rock scissors for bowl licking rights!"

" _I did not_! He's lying! My arms can't reach your side of the car when I'm buckled _Hen-rrryyyyy_!"

The blonde woman watched with an amused smirk curling up her lips as the two children exited the vehicle and converged on their poor mother who bounced between looking at her and the two angry midgets at her legs.

"Enough you two. Robyn- don't hit your brother. Henry- could you please get the bag of groceries from the back and take it inside? Thank you darling."

"Yeah, fine. Whatever," the boy mutter and did what he was told but not before sticking his tongue out at his little sister who smirked back at him from under their mother's arm and kicked a bit of dirt at his shoes.

Regina gently pushed Robyn towards the house and followed the girl up with a hesitant smile. "May I help you?"

"Hello ma'am," the blonde said with a nod of her head, directing a smile at Robyn as she fished her wallet out of her painted on jeans and flashed her special investigator badge. "I'm special detective Emma Swan from the state prosecutors office in Tallahassee."

It was a miracle that Regina was able to keep her face from reflecting the full extent of the shock she felt at those simple words.

 _TALLAHASSEE_?! Her mind screamed while her lips curled into a polite smile that belied the panic that was over taking her from within.

"Henry? Robyn. Why don't you two go inside and put away the cheese for me. And while you're at it pick out a few of the best apples from the basket for the turnovers," Regina asked, extending her arm to the porch where the four of them paused to eye one another and silently prayed her nerves didn't show through.

Robyn's wide hazel eyes took in every inch of the detective like she was a shining beacon of new possibilities. She'd never met a cop before that wasn't someone she called Uncle for her whole life and when Emma caught her staring at the pocket she'd stuffed her wallet in she slyly pulled it back out and flashed the shiny badge at her just to make the child giggle.

"Com'on Robyn, Mom's kicking us out of the room again," Henry sighed, nudging his sister towards the screen door, grateful when she not only opened it but held it for him as well. "Five second head start to the kitchen? One- two- three-" he continued with a grin over his shoulder at his Mother before darting after his baby sister.

Once the children were out of earshot, Emma nodded after them. "They're cute."

"Yes, uh- _thank you_ … Detective Swan," Regina smiled and folded her arms across her chest. "Now, what can I, uh, do… For you? You're quite a ways away from Tallahassee… Florida."

 _Well if she doesn't think you're guilty of murder by now she at the very least finds you to be the most moronic person to ever walk this Earth- Congratulations Regina_ , she scolded herself for her jittery nerves that left her a bumbling mess under Emma's curious gaze.

"Emma, please. And really I was hoping I could maybe talk with your sister, Zelena Mills? I tried knocking but no one answered the door. Is she home? I think she may have some helpful information on a case I'm working on back in Florida."

"Um, uh- well. Yes she, she should be home. I sent her home so this is where… She should... Be." Clearing her throat, Regina squirmed in her place feeling more mortified than she could ever remember and that included sophomore year when the girls took her clothes from the locker room while she showered after pe.

 _What is wrong with you?! Speak coherently you idiot! Just calm down, she doesn't know anything,_ her mind yelled at her mouth, willing it to get its act together and fast before she spilled that the case she's probably working on was buried out by the lavender bush around the corner.

"Cou-Would…" She huffed out a breath before trying again, turning her head to offer Emma a forced smile when she was ready. "Why don't you come in and wait and I'll go and get her for me, er- you," Regina said and pulled the screen door open with a quick yank without looking away from the mesmerizing green eyes she held.

The sharp thud of the edge of the screen door coming into contact with the side of her temple could not have been missed by the blonde who winced in unison with the thoroughly embarrassed brunette who now sported an angry pink mark against her lightly tanned temple.

"You okay?" Emma asked, dipping her chin down to try and better suppress her grin the more flustered the brunette became. "That sounded like it hurt."

Her dignity in tatters, Regina held open the door with her head held high nonetheless, she motioned for the detective to walk in before her. "If I said yes would you believe me?"

"No, not in the slightest," Emma grinned, barely holding back a chuckle. "Is this your first time speaking with an officer?"

"Am I that transparent?"

"Yeah, but it's kind of endearing," she drawled and stuck her hands in the pockets of her red leather jacket, her eyes roaming the old victorian home. "I promise not to put that in my report," she added with a wink.

Regina's eyes went wide at the thought of any of what she's said or done being put into a report. The spot where the screen door hit throbbed painfully.

Taking pity on the woman, Emma smiled gently, doing her best to put on the charm she was taught at the academy. "I'm teasing. There isn't a report yet. I'm just here to ask your sister a few things right now."

"Oh. Well let me just go and get…" Regina trailed off with a nod to the stairs. Once she was out of sight she took the steps two at a time.

They were in deep, _deep_ shit.


	8. Chapter 8

"Please, please, _please_ tell me you have a warrant for your arrest in Tallahassee that has _nothing_ to do with the dead body in our back yard!" Regina frantically hissed the moment she barreled into Zelena's attic bedroom.

Her chest heaved and her head ached in time with her pounding heart. This was not how she envisioned their Friday evening going. There was suppose to be pizza and turnovers. Maybe a game of Uno after. There was suppose to be laughter for crying out loud!

An attractive special detective with questions had not been part of the plan!

Zelena looked up from the book in her lap, her brows knitted in confusion. It wasn't every day she saw her sister quite as frazzled as she was currently.

"What? No, not that I know of why?" She asked, her head cocking to the side when she noticed the pink mark on the younger woman's temple just blow her hairline. "What happened to your head?"

Throwing her best withering glare, Regina threw her arms up dramatically just to have them slap back down against her thighs. "Before the detective on the porch stopped to grill me about your being home _or_ , after my near panic attack, hitting myself in the face with the god damned screen door?!"

" _WHAT?!_ "

"Yeah!"

Zelena's azure eyes were as large as saucers as she scrambled from her bed- the book she'd been reading landed with a dull thud against the floor entirely forgotten in the wake of the Earth shattering news Regina'd brought up with her. Tangling a hand in her messy red locks, she struggled to get her thoughts in order as fear spiked to a whole new level since last weekend.

The officer couldn't possibly know what they'd done. She just needed to breathe and think this through. Yeah. She needed to remain calm. It wasn't like they could both be a mess when they went downstairs. No, calm was key.

"Okay, okay. _Calm down_ and think. He could be here about something other than Nik. Is he cute?"

"She."

"She?"

" _Yes_ , she's a _she_! And how could this _not_ be about Nik?! _What the hell else have you been doing in Florida_?!"

Shooting her a look, Zelena chose not to rise to the bait.

"Alright, well, is _she_ attractive then? Did she seem butch? I've flirted my way out of enough speeding tickets that maybe it can work here too! A little charm never hurt, right?"

Regina was speechless.

Flustered and speechless.

" _What?_ Did she- _I don't know_ ," she growled through her tightly ground teeth. "Yes she's attractive but how the hell is _flirting_ going to get us out of _double homicide?!"_

"We just have to remain calm, collected. We don't know she's here about Nik but if she is we need to keep our story straight."

Her suggestion was wise and cool… And worlds away from what Regina felt at the moment. How could Zelena be so okay with this? There was a detective in their living room for God's sake!

Regina's eye twitched as her voice rose an octave. _"How can I stay calm when we have a dead man in our garden Zelena?_ "

"Hey!" The older woman barked, grabbing her by the arms and holding her tight, forcing dark eyes to hold her gaze. "Listen to me. It's going to be fine. Stick to the story and I will get us out of this Regina, I promise."

"You've promised that before," she bit back, her fear coming out in thinly veiled contempt for her sister and her horrible plans thus far. She could feel her frustration prickling at the backs of her eyes. God she didn't want to cry right now. "How will this time be any different?"

"Because I won't let you go down for my mistakes. Now will you listen to my plan or not?"

Waiting until her baby sis gave her a less than convincing nod, Zelena continued in a quiet whisper as she moved them toward the stairs, feeling if they stayed up stairs any longer it would become suspicious to the detective down below.

"This is how it went, I was driving up to see you and the kids. Nik decided to tag along. We got into a fight last Friday. It got violent and he hit me. I called you and you flew to Charlotte to get me. We left and we haven't seen him since."

"That's it?"

"That's it. It's mostly the truth but it also keeps what we want hidden hidden. We can do this Regina. Just relax and follow my lead."

"Follow your lead. _Follow your lead_." Nodding her head, the brunette groaned under her breath, "we are _so_ screwed."

"No we aren't. Just let me do all the talking and we'll be fine."

Skepticism clouded Regina's glare but she held her tongue and prayed her sister could indeed get them out of this with more success than last time.

* * *

Emma stood awkwardly lingering in the entryway of the house as she waited for the flustered brunette to return.

 _Hopefully_ with _her sister_ , she mused to herself as she took a step further into the home, her viridian eyes taking in the aged decor with open curiosity.

She could hear the excited voices of the two children squabbling from where she assumed the kitchen would be. Their happy peels of laughter took the creepy edge away from the old looming rooms around her.

Mostly.

Peering into the room closest to her, Emma decided a little snooping wouldn't be the worst thing in the world and carefully moved into what looked like a small den that had been turned into a makeshift sunroom for the winter if the potted plants were any indication. Or maybe they just liked the greenery?

 _They sure like gardening up here in the sticks_ , she thought as she nudged a dusky purple terra-cotta pot with the tip of her boot, _must be an East coast thing_.

She thought about all of the flower gardens she'd spotted on her drive up to the home on the edge of town and shrugged, tracing the tip of her finger along the leaf of a fern absently.

"Hello there officer," purred a voice from behind her, startling her out of her thoughts on how weird the upper part of the states were.

Retracting her hand from the frond, Emma turned to regard the woman who leaned against the archway with a nod. "Ms. Mills, I'm special detective Emma Swan-"

A cheshire grin curled the corners of Zelena's lips up as she extended a hand out to the blonde who carefully took it in a firm grip and cut Emma off with a voice like liquid sex. "Zelena, please. My sister said you came all the way up here from Florida to ask me some questions?"

Amusement glittered in her light eyes at the visible gulp she watched Emma take.

"Yes ma'am that's correct," Emma said, her sharp eyes catching sight of Regina lingering behind her sister apprehensively. Returning her gaze to the redhead, she tugged her hand back and slid it into the pocket of her jacket- safely away from those tight fingers that held on just a tad too long for her liking. "I'm here to see if you know the whereabouts of your boyfriend Nik Thanos. He's a key suspect in a case I'm working on and I'd really like to get in touch with him. I went around your place but your neighbors said they hadn't seen either of you in a few weeks."

"Nik?" Zelena scoffed, her head shaking, "I have no idea know where he is."

Emma nodded to the discolored skin that still tinged Zelena's pale skin around her eye purple and black. "He do that?"

"Yes, but a man only hits me once and I'm gone," she shrugged, her chin jutting up in defiance of a man who wasn't even present. "I haven't heard from him since we left him in Charlotte last week after he did this."

"We?"

If Zelena was worried she never let on, though Regina's pulse quickened at the slip up. Or was it a slip up?

 _Shit, what was our story- was I suppose to be there too_ , her mind screamed through the ringing that began to grow louder in her ears.

"Regina and I. I called her after the initial fight. She flew down to Charlotte to meet me and we drove back to Storybrooke together."

"You drove back here," Emma nodded and pulled a hand from her pocket to rub over her mouth, resting her balled up fist against her lips for a beat as she mulled that over. Dropping her hand back down, she stepped to the side so that she could catch Regina's pensive gaze, a curious frown already forming across her brow. "Regina, who's car is that parked out front? The old caddie?"

"Um." Wide mahogany eyes darted between blue and green before settling on the latter like a magnet drawn to something deep within their swirling layers of emerald. "It's, well- it's a funny story actually," she laughed nervously.

Zelena was quick to answer with a charming smirk and a smooth lie to coat over Regina's nervousness.

"It's my car," she said, slipping her arm around her sister's waist to give her what looked like an affectionate squeeze but along the travel across her backside Zelena ruthlessly pinched the small of Regina's back in warning. The message 'don't say a word' coming over loud and clear.

Emma pursed her lips. She knew when she was being lied to. It was a sort of super power she'd had since she was a kid and right now both of these women reeked of dishonesty.

"Riiiight, that's your car. That's funny because the description and plates match the ones that are registered to Nik Thanos."

" _WE STOLE IT_."

It was a toss up who's eyes grew the widest between the two Mills siblings when Regina's verbal vomit hit the air but now it was out there and there was no taking it back.

Knitting her brows in confusion, Emma tilted her head and regarded the jittery woman. "You… Stole the car?"

"Yes. On accident." Regina shifted uncomfortably, biting her lip to the point of pain. "I had to get her out of there and I didn't think to ask the taxi to wait. His car was there so we were going to take it but then he showed up! _And_ _He had a gun to her_! I didn't know what to do! He was basically kidnapping us and I just-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa- he _kidnapped_ you?"

Zelena groaned but managed to not smack the life out of her slack jawed sister who continued to put her foot in her mouth at every turn. Breathing in a deep breath, she released her arm from around Regina and squared her shoulders. She had to take control of this conversation before her sister got them any closer to the actual events of last Friday night.

Stepping in front of her little sister again, Zelena nodded meekly, desperate to sway the blonde's attention to her and away from the babbling idiot behind her. "He planned to, I assume. He was very intoxicated at that point so I'm not sure what was running through his mind. He had a gun that he threatened us with when he caught us in his car trying to leave. We drove for a while and when we stopped for gas he went to use the restroom and we left him and kept driving until we got here."

Again, Emma's lie detector pinged but not nearly as strong as it had been. There were bits of truth mixed in with this tale Zelena was spinning for her.

One swift glance at Regina confirmed her suspicions. There was more to this story then the brazen woman was letting on.

"Is that was happened Regina?"

"Yes?"

Breathing out a heavy sigh, Emma eyed the sisters for a long moment as she mulled over what to do next. She still had no idea where Nik was but she had a strong feeling that one or both of them did.

"Alright. Say that's true and he did try and kidnap you-"

"At gun point." Regina added, panic flashing through her wide eyes at the memory.

Alright, so that part Emma believed.

"At gun point," she conceded with a sympathetic nod. "I'm going to have to take the car in for evidence. I'm going to need to file some reports but I'd like to come back and talk with you. Get some more of this story down tomorrow if that's fine," she asked without actually giving them much of a choice. She was the law. If she wanted answers she'd get them one way or another.

Reaching into her pocket for her wallet, Emma pulled out a card with her details and handed it over to Regina. She didn't miss the slight tremble to her slender fingers when she took the small rectangle of card stock.

Yeah, there was definitely something they were holding back and Emma was certain Regina was the way to get to the bottom of it.

* * *

"Are you and Auntie Zee in a fight?" Henry asked later that night once he and Robyn were tucked in bed.

Regina's smile froze in place as she debated what to tell her son. Apparently their barely contained jabs at dinner hadn't gone as unnoticed as they'd hoped.

Gently brushing the tips of her fingers along the soft wisps of brown hair that rested against his forehead reassuringly, she produced a kinder smile than the ones she'd worn at dinner. "No sweetheart. We just had a disagreement earlier but we aren't fighting."

"Is it cuz that fake cop lady?" Robyn questioned, the head of her ragged old stuffed monkey tucked under her chin beneath her quilt.

A chuckle slipped past Regina's lips and she shook her head. "Fake cop lady? Detective Swan. And no my love it wasn't about her. It was about something else. Please don't worry yourselves about any of that. No one is fighting. Everything will be alright."

Henry's sigh turned into a loud yawn that mingled with another soft chuckle from his Mother. His eyes fluttered closed when her lips pressed to his forehead, a sleepy smile quirking up his lips.

"Alright, now get some rest. I love you Henry," she breathed, pressing a second kiss to his cheek before doing the same to the curly haired girl in the other bed.

"Kisses for monkey too?" The tiny girl insisted, squirming under her blanket to get the stuffed toy out enough to be kiss accessible.

Who was she to ignore a request like that?

Leaning back down, Regina planted a soft kiss against the matted fur of the toy that'd been her daughter's favorite since before she could walk. "Goodnight monkey, please watch over my loves for me while I'm asleep. Keep them safe," she implored the faded stuffy.

Robyn giggled and Henry rolled his eyes but a small grin remained in place as he watched his Mom switch off the lamp and turn on a small nightlight that lit the dark room with a warm comforting glow.

Pausing at the door, Regina lingered with her hand on the doorframe, watching her children snuggle further into their pillows. Her heart swelled with the love she felt for them. They were worth every lie she'd tried to tell today.

"Goodnight my loves, I'll see you in the morning."

"Night Mom, I love you."

"G'night Mommy, love you. Monkey too!"

Regina shook her head. She made sure to leave the door open just a crack before making her exit down the stairs. Today had been a whirl wind of events. Had it really only been earlier that afternoon that she'd sat through a PTA meeting?

The weight of the dead man in the backyard was a heavy one to bare and she wasn't sure she could keep it up for much longer. They had to figure a way to get the detective to leave town before the blonde unearthed their less than six feet under secret.

The sound of the blender whirring to life caught her attention as she stepped off the final stair. Following the grating sound around the corner into the kitchen she paused, smirking at the sight she found. She really shouldn't have been surprised.

Zelena was decked out in her pajamas mixing in another generous splash of tequila to the blender. Her wild waves were tamed into two braids over her shoulders. It made her look less severe somehow, more vulnerable than she'd been all afternoon.

"Midnight margaritas? You know it's only nine."

Zelena's lips pursed but she didn't bother to look over at her sister, instead she focused on adding in more ice to the quickly filling vessel.

Regina sighed and bowed her head. So it was going to be like that then.

The silence lasted for another minute or four before Zelena rolled her eyes dramatically. Setting the bottle of triple sec down a little rougher than intended, she shook her head and huffed, "I'm not mad _at you_."

"Could have fooled me," Regina retorted, her brows reaching toward her hairline in a perfect 'puh-lease' little sister-esque pout she'd perfected by the time she was three.

Dark eyes watched the redhead put the lid back on the blender closely. A smirk tugged at her lips as an idea sprung to life. With a quick flick of her wrist she beat the older girl's finger to the on switch, sending the blender roaring to life and causing Zelena to jump ever so slightly.

Magic for the win.

"Show off," Zelena muttered, a small grin of her own forming.

Regina came to lean against the counter, preening just to gain a laugh from her big sister. It wasn't all fixed. They were still wading in deep uncertain waters with the detective poking around and the obvious issue with the human fertilizer by the lavender but in that second they could find the humor in how horrific this afternoon went. They were still sisters and that was enough for them.

Pouring them each a heaping glass of frozen goodness once it was well mixed, Zelena gulped down as much of hers as her head could handle before hitting brain freeze levels. She pointed a finger at Regina and laughed her worry away.

"You were _terrible_ today! What was all of that about? I haven't seen you that flustered since you came home from prom with your hair sticking up all over the place and Auntie Mal called you out for getting drunk and having sex with Ruby in the back of Granny's pickup," she sniggered around another gulp of boozy slush.

Regina scoffed into her glass before she too indulged in the potent concoction, wrinkling her nose is mild disgust but drank on regardless. "Oh shut up! _I was nervous_! It's just- I don't know. There's just something about her. I… I don't think I can lie to her. It's like I don't have control of faculties when I'm speaking to her."

A loud laugh erupted from Zelena that made her eyes flash with the depth of her mirth. "Please! You were not just nervous. I honestly didn't know if you wanted to make a run for the front door or go dry hump her leg. You are so transparent!"

" _What!?_ You've clearly been drinking well before I came down here because at no point did I _ever_ look like I wanted to dry- Well… What you said." Regina objected, flushed clear up to her ears in embarrassment. "God you're a pervert! Not everything comes down to sex and attraction. She's a law official and we- more specifically- _I_ am a murderer. I think it's reasonable to be nervous around her."

"I can read between the lines sis," she said and waggled her brows suggestively just to get a rise out of her dear baby sister.

Gaping, Regina shook her head, downing the last of her margarita in a hefty swig. She slammed the glass down against the counter and reached for the bottle of tequila. Pointing a warning finger at her sister as she filled herself a shots worth of amber liquid into her empty cup. "You're completely certifiable."

"Mhmm," was all the older woman said around her mouthful of drink. The knowing smirk on her face saying all that she wasn't.

The evening went on in much the same fashion. Shots, margaritas, a moment where belting out Don't Stop Believing off key yet oh so passionately seemed like a really great idea. The further the alcohol saturated their systems the more freely laughter fell from their lips and the jokes grew even more obtuse.

Pink cheeked and hysterical, slouched over the kitchen table with arms slung over each other, was how Mal found them at a little after two in the morning. An amused smirk graced her lips as she sat herself down across from the sniggering duo.

"Having a good evening darlings?"

A noise stuck between the dying wail of a small animal and an exclamation of 'ha' escaped Zelena as she flung herself away from the table and into the back of her chair dramatically, eliciting another rowdy round of laughter from the very intoxicated Regina at her side.

Prying herself up from the table was more effort than Regina had thought it would be. Every part of her body felt heavy and tingly all at the same time.

Managing to get her body upright for a moment she instantly fell sideways against her sister, laughing so hard tears slipped down her reddened cheeks. She held a hand to her chest as her hard hiccuped laughter bounced around the kitchen, blending with Zelena's in perfect drunken harmony.

"I'll take that as a yes," Mal chuckled, her hand reaching out to play with one of the discarded shot glasses in the middle of the table. "I'm glad you're enjoying yourselves. It's been so long since I've seen you both this happy."

A dampened business card that had clearly been crumpled then smoothed back out again laid just beyond the shot glass the matriarch played with next to a now empty bottle of tequila and discarded pile of lime peels.

Cocking her head to the side, Mal reached for the business card, not thinking anything of it other than simple curiosity and not wanting whatever it was to get ruined in their inebriated state.

" _NO!_ " Zelena cried, her eyes flashing wide with horror. She shot her hand out to grab at the card but came up slow thanks to her dulled reflexes. "That's- I need tha- _Regina has a girlfriend and that's her number_! Don't look at it!"

Outraged, Regina's head snapped up from it's resting place against Zelena's chest. " _I DO NOT_ -" her voice roared out only to stop, her glazed eyes as wide as her sister's. "I mean, I uh- that's my… She's! Her's really pretty Auntie."

Narrowing her gaze on the wide eyed girls, she glanced down at the card in her hand, the frown on her face growing more pronounced. "A detective? Is that what Robyn was trying to talk about at dinner? Why is a detective coming around here? Zelena?"

"Why do you assume it's me!?"

Regina's hard snort drew a fiery blue glare. "Well it normally _is_ you. She's just calling a spade a spade!"

Zelena scoffed. "You're the one that did it this time!"

"I DID NOT! _You_ picked the crappy boyfriend! _You_ wanted to use magic to fix this! _Not me_! I just went along with you like always to make sure you didn't do something even more stupid!"

" _Oooh, poor Wittle Wegina_ \- you could have said _no_! You're suppose to be the smart one!"

The bickering would have gone on had Mal's hand not slammed down harshly against the table top. " _Enough!_ " When she was sure she'd gained their attention she continued, her eyes hard and full of distrust. "What did you do? You used magic?"

"It wasn't anything serious," Zelena lied smoothly at the same time Regina assured, "we had a problem but we took care of it."

Mal may not have had Emma's super power, but she wasn't stupid either. "Regina. What happened. What kind of magic did you do?"

"Nothing happened! There was a complication getting Zelena but we took care of it. We handled it and once this detective is gone everything will go back to normal! I just want it to all go back to normal," the brunette lamented and closed her eyes tight, willing the room to stop moving so fast.

Mal scowled at the pair for a long drawn out minute, then with a hard shove from the table she stood up and tossed the card at the sobering women. "Fine. You want to handle your own problems. Fine. I'm going back to bed. Clean this mess up before you turn in, I don't want the children to come down tomorrow morning to see what you two have been up to."

With a final parting glower, Mal left the girls to stew in the tension filled kitchen. All frivolity from the evening was well and truly gone. The reality of their situation made Regina's stomach churn. Or maybe that was the third of a bottle of tequila that was sloshing around in her stomach that make it twist and turn so violently.

" _Way to go idiot_. What next? A blinking sign with 'here lies Nik' to go in the back garden?" Zelena groaned, her head coming to rest against the table with a soft 'tunk'. " _Stop spilling the truth to everyone_!"

Mimicking her sister, Regina cradled her head in her arms, her voice muffled in her dark little hole. " _Oh shut up Zelena._ "

* * *

 **AN:** I won't even pretend I'm not in love with the Mills sisters :) also if you'd like to yell at me to get these updates out sooner, or see my many excuses for why I'm not getting them out feel free to add me on tumblr (wifeysforlifey) :)


	9. Chapter 9

Morning hurt.

The harsh light that filtered through Regina's bedroom window burned the backs of her eyelids.

The sharp slam of doors and cabinets altering her to her childrens whereabouts down stairs with every jarring thud made the pulsing in her head worse.

Breathing.

It all _hurt_.

"What the hell did we do last night?" Zelena rasped as she met her less disheveled looking sister in the hallway. Her own sallow complexion and red rimmed eyes said just where on the scale of hung over she resided and it was a fair distance from Regina's place on the ladder.

Fixing her big sister with a glare, Regina huffed and nodded toward the stairs to get them moving. Even the steady cadence of walking down the creaky old steps made her brain throb resentfully.

 _Why does this blasted house have so many stairs?_ Regina lamented between winces. She was certain by the time they made it to the kitchen she would be as sick as Zelena looked.

"I don't think I've been _that_ drunk since my wedding night," she grumbled, rubbing her cold fingers against her temple under the soft tangle of chestnut locks.

Zelena's only answer was a snort that ended as soon as it began thanks to a sharp stab of pain behind her eyes.

"No offense, but your offspring are far too loud at-… What time _is_ it?"

"Early. And I blame their father."

" _Thanks a lot Daniel_ ," the older woman muttered darkly as they took the last few steps together and headed for the sun drenched kitchen.

"Coffee?" Regina asked already moving towards the maker to get her much needed fix of caffeine. Caffeine would help and if it didn't she could at least convince Zelena to bludgeon her with the pot should she really get desperate for the pain to stop. She liked having options.

Folding herself into a seat at the table, Zelena dropped her head into the nest of her arms, groaning as a hard round of laughter from the children outback filtered in through the open back door. "God yes. With a heaping side of tylenol and vodka please!"

"How can you even _think_ about alcohol right now?" Regina asked around a mouthful of tylenol, the bottle she'd pulled from the medicine drawer still clutched in her hand. "Even the _thought_ of the smell of it is making my stomach chu-"

To anyone else the high pitched scream that cut through the otherwise serene morning air and silenced the brunette would have been hard to place. But to Regina that was a cry she knew too well.

It was the kind of cry that froze her insides with dread. When that kind of piercing cry came from your child there was no mistaking something horrible had happened.

" _HENRY_!"

A tidal wave of unadulterated terror crashed through Regina's entire being and before she even had a conscious thought the bottle of pain reliever went clattering to the floor, spattering the floorboards with dozens of small white pills while her legs propelled her across the kitchen and out onto the porch in search of her surely maimed son.

Her heart pounded harder than her head and waves of nausea threatened to strangle her but she didn't care. Couldn't care.

Henry was hurt. Possibly broken, bleeding-

She barely made it down the weathered porch steps before the tearful boy slammed head long into her stomach. His trembling arms encircled her waist firmly and harsh hiccuped sobs poured from him between jagged sniffles that got lost in the fabric of his Mother's robe.

" _Henry!_ Henry _what happened_?! _Are you hurt_?" Reeling back as much as she could in his iron tight grasp, Regina cupped his tear soaked cheeks, her dark gaze searching for any sign of a bloody cut, bump, stinger, or worse. "Sweetheart, sweetheart- _Henry_! Baby _what happened_? _Are you okay?_ "

" _Th-th-there was a-a man_!"

Regina frowned in confusion.

"A man? Where?" Glaring out across the yard to find the man who'd scared the life out of her little boy, she could hardly keep up with the swirling shift of emotions that tumbled from terror to fiercely protective in the blink of an eye.

Whoever dared come near her children had a thing or twenty coming to them, that was for damn sure.

The groan of the porch pulled her attention up to Zelena and for a brief moment she felt relieved to have someone else there to have her back or at the very least watch the children while she laid into this unwelcome intruder.

Returning her gaze to her son, Regina searched his face for answers to questions she'd yet to ask. "Where was the man at Henry? Was he in the yard? On the other side of the fence?"

Henry flung his arm in the direction the old oak tree at the edge of the property, his distress clear in the dark pools of his eyes. "H-he! He came ou-outta _nowhere_! _HE HAD THINGS STICKING OUT OF HIS EYES_! Like sticks- like _metal sticks_! He-he! He asked t-to play with us!"

Regina's body went rigid and somewhere behind her she could hear Zelena gasp and clatter down the porch steps to join them.

"Regina!"

 _No. This is just a horrific coincidence_ , she reasoned but even reason couldn't stop the rush of worry that returned in mass.

" _Where's your sister_ ," Regina demanded, already in motion toward the withered old tree.

"Sh-she was right behind me Mom! _I thought she was behind me_!"

Without pausing to look over her shoulder, Regina flung her arm back and shouted at her sister, "take him inside. _Now!_ "

She didn't bother to wait to see if her order was followed, she couldn't. Not when she didn't know who this man was who had set his sights on her children and more so when Robyn was no where to be seen. Regina picked up her pace until she was running across the dew slicked grass.

"Robyn!? _ROBYN_!"

Nothing. Her heart hammered deafeningly in her ears.

Every worse case scenario played across her mind in a matter of seconds. How many times had she watched America's Most Wanted and feared for those children, felt for those parents? God this couldn't be her fate too. Not after Daniel.

 _Please God don't take her too_ , she silently begged.

" _ROBYN ALEXIA COLTER_ -" she howled with a fear the twisted the girl's name in a way that left a sour taste in her mouth.

The rest of her demand to be be answered never fully made it past her parted lips once she rounded the thick body of the tree because there, perched on the ancient tree swing, feet dangling a good foot from the ground, sat Robyn gazing up at the empty space just above her shoulder. A crooked grin curled up one side of her cheek to reveal the small dimple she'd inherited from her Father.

She looked the picture of ease. Safe and sound. No boogey man to be found ready to snatch her from her home.

But it wasn't the grin on her lips nor the muffled giggles that made the hair on Regina's arms stand on end. No. It was the way the swing moved without any assistance from her daughter's stilled legs that made her wish she didn't know that there were actually things that went bump in the night.

"Robyn!" The brunette snapped a little harder than she intended as she closed the distance between them and snatched the girl up from the crudely made swing, clutching her to her chest while she edged backward warily, all while eyeing the space around the still moving toy nervously. "Didn't you hear me calling you? Why didn't you answer me?"

Robyn pushed unruly waves out of her face so that she could better frown at her mother for interrupting her playtime. "He told me not to," she stated simply with a shrug, the 'duh' that lingered behind her statement clear even if it wasn't said aloud.

That was enough to jolt the older woman into a steady jog back towards the house, away from the growing unease that prickled her skin and made her feel like she was being watched from the out stretched branches at her back.

" _Who told you not to?!_ "

"The man by the tree."

Storming up the porch steps, Regina wasted no time in slamming the kitchen door shut behind them but not before casting one last glance at the deserted backyard to see if maybe, just maybe, she would catch a glance of this man she prayed she was wrong about.

 _It can't be him_ , she thought firmly, _he's dead. I killed him. There was someone else out there, someone real - tangable. I should call Graham to come check the property. Yes, I'll call Graham._

"He said we were practicing hide and seek. That's why I couldn't answer you Mommy. He said that when the _real_ game started there wouldn't be anywhere you and Auntie could hide that he wouldn't find you," Robyn continued once she was settled on the kitchen counter. "He said he was still _really_ into sisters."

Zelena's wide eyes found her sister's over Henry's head. " _What!? Robyn who told you-_ "

Before the redhead could utter a syllable more Regina whipped around, her dark orbs flashing fierce as she hissed through her teeth, "You are going to march upstairs and tell Mal everything! And I mean _everything_ Zelena! And then you're going to _beg_ her to help us figure out what the hell is going on here! Because _this_! _This is too much_!"

"Regina! You can't be serious! How do you even know it-"

" _My children Zelena_! Even the possibility of that near _my children_ ," a wave of fury flowed through Regina like none before. This had gone on long enough. "You go up there _now_! And you _beg_ Mal or so help me-"

"Uh Mom?" Henry quietly interjected from his place at the table beside his wide eyed Aunt, a half eaten turnover poised for another bite. "Auntie Mal left this morning before you guys got up."

"What?!" The brunette turned on her son, her eyes blown as wide as the set of blue that bounced between them. "What do you mean she left? Did she say when she was coming home?!"

"No she didn't say much. Just that you were both a bunch of big stupid idiots. She seemed was really mad though and she had her suitcase with her. That cool old one with the dragon on it!"

Zelena dropped her head onto her waiting hand, unsure if the pounding of her head was from the lingering hangover or the freshly mounting stress she felt. She didn't need to look up to know Regina was glaring daggers at her, she could feel each and every pointed tip directed from the fuming brunette.

Was there nothing she couldn't screw up?

* * *

Storybrooke was weird Emma concluded after a long morning spent between the local police station and the lone B&B the town seemed to have to offer. It wasn't a bad weird per se just a hell of a lot different than where she was from.

People here stared too long, whispered too much, and everyone had something to say about the Mills family. She'd casually mentioned the family at the little diner attached to the B&B and boy had she not been expecting the proverbial dam to break the way it had.

" _They're witches!"_

" _Don't ever throw a ball at them! If you do they'll give you the chicken pox!"_

" _Everyone knows that they kill their husbands off. It's gone back generations. Any man who loves a Mills woman will die a horrible death within a few years."_

 _"The great Aunt, Mal, I swear she doesn't age! She just doesn't age! It's witchcraft I tell you!"_

" _I've seen them fly around on broomsticks!"_

 _"I know they're stealing my chickens and slaughter them in their witchy rituals!"_

 _"The sister, the slutty one, hexed my husband! She filled his head with all kinds of filth that lead him to cheat!"_

" _Thems love the devil!"_

It went on and on! Each new piece of drivel more ridiculous then than last. Witches? Puh-lease. It was almost like this little sea side town had never heard of the real world. Magic didn't exist any more than unicorns or Tony the tiger. They needed to lay off watching reruns of Charmed and get with the program.

Emma's irritation with the nonsense the townsfolk called information had forced her to leave the diner to find somewhere else to get a decent cup of coffee and if she were lucky something she could actually put towards her investigation. That was how she'd stumbled upon Uncommon Grounds and got to talking with the chatty brunette who tended the quiet coffee shop.

"They get a bad rap. It's that whole people fear the unknown thing I think," she said with a snap of her bubble gum. "Small town, small minds I guess."

"The unknown thing?" Emma asked after a swallow of the best coffee she'd ever tried, her head cocked to the side.

Ruby's gaze turned a touch incredulous as she stared across the counter at the blonde detective. "You do know they're witches right? The whole family. Have been for, god, like the dawn of time or something. I'd have thought anyone you've talked to about them would have mentioned it right off the bat."

"Ahh com'on! Not you too Ruby! I thought you were the first sane person I found here!"

"I _am_ sane and they _are_ witches. That's why everyone in town is so damn scared of them. But they're not bad or anything. I've never seen them maliciously cast against anyone- well apart from this one time with Robyn but it was totally called for if you ask me."

Emma fixed Ruby with a look that screamed 'you've got to be joking'.

"You expect me to believe that the Mills sisters are witches. They kill their husbands, cast hexes, fly- what next? Do they dance naked under the full moon too?"

"Yep, I really do." The leggy brunette chirped with a grin that turned into a knowing smirk. "Oh and there was definitely a time in high school when I went to one of those solstice celebrations with them and I can absolutely confirm I saw some tasteful side boob from a Miss Regina Mills being flashed at mother moon. She'd never own up to it now but I remember a time when she was a bit more willing to let loose."

When Emma's face froze in place, eyes wide and mouth parted in shock, Ruby let out a loud whoop of laughter.

"Remember to breathe Emma or your gay is going to burn a hole in my boss lady's stool and she will _not_ be happy about that." Whipping the towel from her shoulder, she teasingly swatted at the shocked officer.

"What?!" Emma squawked. A soft shade of pink seeped across her fair cheeks as she gaped at the still smirking Ruby. "No! It's not- It isn't! Ruby it isn't like that."

At the pointedly arched brow the barista threw in her direction, Emma flushed a little darker, her eyes narrowing as she hissed under her breath, "would you stop looking at me like that? Jesus. It's not a crime to be gay."

"Ha! I knew it! My gaydar cannot be beat!"

"Okay, okay. Well done. Now can we get back to the Mills? When Zelena showed up in town did she have a guy with her? Average height. Slim build. Blonde, blue eyed- a major asshole."

"A guy? No, not that I know of. Regina was really rattled the day after she went to pick Zee up and with the way Zelena's face was all swollen up- God I've never seen someone so beat up and my husband is the sheriff so I get to see everyones mug shots. It was bad. Way bad."

Emma nodded and brought her mug to her lips to finish off the last dregs of coffee it held. So they didn't come back with Nik. That part of the puzzle matched up with the sisters story at least but it didn't settle that nagging voice at the back of her head that whispered something wasn't right here.

The bell above the coffee shop door tinkled followed by a tired plea of ' _can you just walk normal please?! Thank you!_ '

Emma watched Ruby's grin grow to face splitting wide before she had time to turn in her seat to see an exasperated Regina pushing both of her children through the doorway. Their eyes caught and for a second Emma was sure she saw a flash of shocked pleasure flicker through those dark orbs.

"Ruby!"

"Heeeey love bug! You ready to come hang out with your favorite Auntie today?!" The kindly woman asked as she leaned over the counter to peck at Robyn's rounded cheek once the girl had scaled up onto her own stool beside the detective who watched on with an amused smile.

"Yeeeaaah!" Turning in her seat, the little bubble of sunshine nudged her arm against the detective's. "Hi fake cop lady!"

Emma laughed and nodded, "Hey kid."

"Hey Ruby," Henry greeted much softer than is boisterous sister. His dark gaze scanned the room before he looked back at his honorary aunt. "Is Forest here?"

Ruby shook her head. "Nope, we have-ta go pick him up from Granny's before we head home."

Clearing her throat, Regina moved behind the counter to set her bag down and accepted the kiss to her cheek from her friend when she straightened up. "Thank you so much for taking them for me Ruby. I didn't want them at the house. I know Graham said he didn't find anything but I just," she trailed off, clearly still uneasy after the mornings events.

She hadn't shared in great detail what had happened in her back yard that morning with her best friend, no one but Mal needed to know the full extent of their problem, but in her desperation to get the kids away from the house she'd slipped up about there being someone on their land. That lead to Ruby calling her husband directly to go and check it out for them with a tacked on offer to have the kids spend the night with them just to be safe.

"Hey, don't _ever_ feel bad about calling. What are friends for right?" The younger brunette smiled reassuringly. Pulling off her apron, Ruby went about getting ready to leave. "Alright so I counted down my drawer and everything's been wiped down. Detective chatty here will probably want a refill of the best coffee she's ever had and we ran out of those apple oat muffins. Need anything else before I go boss?"

Regina smiled a tight lipped smile and fought to stop peeking at the blonde who's eyebrows twitched in shock when Ruby called her boss. "No that's more than enough Ruby, thank you. And thank you again for taking them. I owe you."

Scoffing, Ruby swatted her hand dismissively through the air on her way around the counter to pick Robyn up from her stool. "Staaawp! It's fine! Now say see ya tomorrow to yer momma kiddos so we can blow this popsicle stand and get our s'mores on!"

"Bye Mom! Are you sure you're gonna be okay by yourself tonight?" Henry asked, not sure he really wanted to leave her all on her own. He snuggled up against her side and stared up at her, worry etched into his young face. "I can come home if you get scared."

For a brief moment Regina's smile faltered.

 _When did he grow up so much_ , she wondered, her fingers brushing back the wisps of his fringe. "No sweetheart you go and have fun with Forest. I'll be alright, besides, I won't be alone. I have Zelena there with me. We'll be fine. Now go. Have a s'more for me. Extra marshmallow just like Daddy always did."

"'Kay," he grinned, most of the worry fading from him at the simple request.

"BYE MOMMY!" Robyn sang, leaning over so far in Ruby's arms that the brunette nearly dropped her. "I love, love, _looooove_ you! Imma have suh-more for you too 'kay!?"

Chuckling, Regina pressed a kiss to her daughters forehead, smoothing back strawberry curls with an affectionate stroke. "Thank you my love. Please be on your best behavior for Ruby and Graham. Try not to stay up too late."

"I'll make her go to bed Mom," Henry reassured sagely.

"Alrighty let's move out troops," Ruby said, nudging Henry to start moving towards the door. Glancing back at her friend she smiled. "Hey! No worrying. They'll be fine with us. I already told Graham he was in charge of picking up their bags later and to throw in one last sweep of the property per best friend freaked out request."

"Thank you Ruby."

The younger brunette leveled her friend with a serious look that usually escaped the happy go lucky woman. "The offer to come stay is always there for you too Regina, don't ever forget that."

"I know and thank you, really, but I'll be alright. I have things I need to take care of."

"Alright, if you're sure."

Boosting Robyn up her hip one last time, Ruby sent a playful glare at the blonde who sat nearly silent through the exchange of children. "Be nice to my bestie. Make her cry and I'll make you cry Emma. My husband's the sheriff and I am not below using him to hide bodies in the woods."

Emma held up her hands in mock surrender. "I have no plans of making anyone cry. Just a few questions and a hope for some more of this amazing cinnamon coffee you've got here. It's seriously magic."

With a final parting glare at the blonde, Ruby left with the kids in tow leaving the coffee shop empty but for the two women and the one lone customer who dutifully ignored everyone else in the room thanks to the stack of textbooks opened around them.

"So," Regina started, clearing her throat self consciously when Emma's eyes flittered to her. She could feel her cheeks growing warm and silently cursed whatever this fluttering she felt was to the depths of hell. "Decided to come harass my staff for information about us, did you?"

"It was a happy coincidence."

A crooked smile curled Emma's lips up to one side at the arched brow she received in return. "Honestly! I didn't know the place was yours until you came in the door and Ruby called you boss. It's nice. Much better than that diner I was at this morning."

"You mean Ruby's grandmother's diner?"

"What!? You're joking!"

Regina's rich chuckle danced around the space between them as she reached for the blonde's empty mug and sat it behind the counter to be cleaned. Picking up two new mugs from the clean rack she turned away from Emma to start on making her another cup of coffee and a cup of tea for herself. Her velvety rasp drifted over her shoulder as she worked.

"Not in the slightest. And let me tell you Eugenia Lucas was not too pleased when her granddaughter left to come work for the competition."

"Man, she did _not_ look like the kind of lady you want to steal anyone from. How'd you manage to survive that?"

"Dumb luck? It also didn't hurt I've been best friends with her granddaughter for the majority of my life. Mostly I think she was just taking pity on me. Ruby is the one with the business sense. Without her this place would have never happened."

Chuckling, Emma nodded her thanks to the fresh cup of coffee that was placed in front of her. "So, speaking of Granny's… I heard some pretty interesting things about you over there."

Regina schooled her face into a neutral expression, praying for an air of calm that belied the shock of worry that sent her pulse quickening. "Which kind of things would those be?" She asked, absently circling her index finger around the lip of her tea cup.

The circular wobbling of her mug caught Emma's attention at the same time Regina noticed what she was doing to the officer's cup and instantly ceased her fidgeting finger, her wide brown eyes saying nothing yet everything all at once.

" _Witch_ kind of things," the blonde laughed weakly at her own play on words but when Regina didn't join in the laughter died away. "Uh, well. Just- Jesus Regina. I had people telling me that you love Satan while you fly around on your broom stick giving people chicken pox because you're from a family of witches."

"We also kill our husbands," Regina added, unable to meet the blown blue eyes boring into her. "I'm sure they told you that as well."

Emma sat with her mouth agape. This had to be a joke. She was just playing along with the rest of the town. Yeah. That had to be it. Witches- they weren't really real.

The longer the silence lingered between them the more relaxed Regina became. Emma hadn't walked out on her yet. That was a plus.

A flicker of amusement shot through her dark gaze before she quickly schooled her features back into a mask of calm indifference. "Would you like to see some?"

"See some? See some what," Emma queried apprehensively, noting the shift in the brunette's demeanor instantly.

"Magic of course."

Upon the floundering look that replaced the blonde's smile, Regina couldn't help but smirk. Drawing in a deep breath she lowered her voice into a rich husk, breathing her words out as though they really would produce some kind of magical show for the officer.

"Twist the bones and bend the back," she purred, her body swaying in time to the cadence of her hypnotic timbre. "Trim him of his baby fat," she continued with a sultry rasp, barely making it through the clearly lifted lines as Emma's eyes narrowed in amused annoyance.

"You're just screwing with me! That's from Hocus Pocus you liar!" Despite the accusation she hurled at the woman behind the counter she laughed, rubbing the goose bumps on her arms away before Regina could spot how the rasp of her voice had gotten to her.

Breaking into a broad smile, Regina laughed heartily along with Emma. "Entirely. You should have seen your face detective! But I can assure you that isn't how magic works. Not really, anyway. It can't actually turn a young boy into feline and there certainly is no devil in the craft unlike what most of Storybrooke seems to think."

"Okay hold on. Are you saying…"

Clearing her throat, Regina folded her arms protectively across her chest. She couldn't shake the deep seated need to explain herself to the woman in front of her. It was like she couldn't control that part of her, the part that begged to be understood. "That it's true. But it's not like you think. Paganism is nothing more than a reverence for nature and traditions that center around that spiritualism and some of us, well, we're a little more in tune with that."

Emma nodded, her mind a whirl as she listened. "Sooo does that make you a good witch or a bad witch?"

A choked up chuckle got stuck on its way past Regina's lips as she went to take a drink of her tea. Sipping the warm liquid, her shoulders shrugged noncommittally. "Neither. I make teas and tonics. I garden and I bake. My family? They've be known to meddle in peoples love lives and to like dancing under the stars. But magic?" She frowned as she tried to find the right words to convey what swelled in her heart when she thought of what the craft at one time had meant to her.

"Magic isn't some power that bends all things to your will it's- it's just belief. A belief that if you open yourself up to the world around you, that if you put forth the good in which you want to see, maybe nature can help you in your times of need. I don't think that makes us evil do you?"

"I-… I don't… No, I don't think that does," Emma admitted, confusion marring her certainty.

Silence fell between them and stretched on in quiet thoughtfulness until Regina's expression faltered in confusion of her own. "Your eyes are blue? Yesterday… I could have sworn they were green."

Emma snorted out a breath, thankful for the change of topic that allowed her muddled mind time to further think through Regina's explanation of paganism, and the fact that the woman basically just owned up to being a witch, later.

"Uh yeah. They shift between blue and green depending what color I'm wearing that day," she answered with a glance down at her faded blue button up. "I'm shocked you noticed. No one ever notices that."

 _Eyes that change color_ , the brunette's mind whispered in a wistful voice she hadn't heard in years.

A voice that touched on a time when love was a terrifying thought and she wanted nothing more than someone who couldn't ever exist. Because if they didn't exist than her heart would never be broken.

 _No, it's not- it couldn't be_ , she brushed away those nagging tendrils of thought before they could take root.

"So what happened at your place this morning?" Emma asked, trying to move the conversation away from talk of magic and things that made her head spin. "Was someone poking around?"

Regina shifted her weight uncomfortably. "Yes? Maybe. I'm not sure. Henry and Robyn- someone scared them while they were playing. The sheriff came out and looked around but he didn't find anything."

"Jesus, are they okay?" Sitting up straighter on her stool, Emma pressed her forearms against the lip of the counter as she leaned closer to Regina, concern radiating from her in waves. "Is there anything I can do? Maybe look around again and make sure the creep is really gone?"

Shaking her head, the brunette smiled weakly at the kind offer. "No, no, it's fine. They were shaken up at first but after we got them inside and the sheriff came by they were fine. But it is why I sent them to Ruby's for the night, just in case."

Settling back on her seat, Emma pushed a hand through her hair, her furrowed brows saying how deep in thought she really was over this. "Well um, I still have some questions I want to ask you, but uh, maybe we can wait until you're done here? That way I can take a look around for you. I know you said it's fine but I'd rather be safe than sorry ya know? What time are you closing up here?"

"Around five but you really don't have to come look around. It's- I can handle it."

Emma shook her head and slipped off her stool, her mind already made up. She pulled on her jacket and grabbed for her wallet, slapping a few bills on the counter to cover the coffees and muffin she'd had. "I'll see you there after five then."

"There's no talking you out of it is there Detective?"

"Nope! And I told you it's Emma. I'll see you later Regina," she said with a cheeky grin that showed off her lone dimple while she backed up toward the door, waving her hand lamely once she'd pulled it open. "Bye."

Regina shook her head. She watched the detective leave with a roll of her eyes and a grin she couldn't quite keep at bay.

Picking up the money and the half consumed mug of coffee it struck her that this was the first conversation that she'd had with the other woman where she hadn't fumble for words or made herself look like a complete and utter fool. As long as she could keep that up maybe she would actually make it through the rest of Emma's questions and manage to banish whatever residual energy of Nik's that lingered around the house without everything imploding.

Maybe this didn't have to be a dire as it felt.


	10. Chapter 10

" _Where is it?_ "

Regina huffed as she sat back on her heels, breathless from her fight with the old wardrobe in front of her. She'd been digging through the contents of the basement for the last twenty minutes trying to find a book- a journal really- that she hadn't thought about in decades.

"It has to be here! Mal never throws anything away," she growled at the cluttered walls, daring them to say she was wrong.

With another huffy breath she pushed up from her place kneeled in front of the massive old piece of furniture and moved to a set of trunks she hoped held the contents of her early life. Prying the latches up, Regina quickly began to sift through old dress up clothes and various other things she vaguely recognized as hers. Each layer she pushed aside brought on a new wave of memory that made her chuckle.

Oh to be young again.

Reaching the bottom of the trunk, her fingers skimmed the stiff spines of old books long since forgotten. "Please be in here."

Tucked beneath a love worn copy of the Secret Garden in the corner of the chest Regina found the ragged old volume she was searching for.

She drank in the sight of the distantly familiar journal with reverence. This had been the bearer of her secrets. The listener of her every worry and annoyance with Zelena. It saw the pain she felt when her father died and the utter desolation when her mother joined him less than a week later. This faded little journal with the black stallion on the cover had stayed with her until she no longer had faith in the contents it held.

This was where she'd dreamed in casting. From the good to the bad to the hopefully naive.

Without a pause she thumbed through the book, her then looping cursive stared up at her in all its innocent splendor as she scanned the time washed pages for a spell she'd cast not long before giving the journal up entirely.

Brittle clematis petals fell in to her lap and she knew she'd finally found the section she was after. Her sharp gaze swept over the words she once begged the universe herself to be made real.

"A true love spell to never fall in love. For every petal I pluck I'm wishing for something that won't ever exist. I _refuse_ to _ever_ fall in love."

Each line that followed made her heart pound more furiously against her chest than the last. This couldn't be real. It was a coincidence. It _had_ to be a coincidence.

 _They will be honorable, brave, and kind._

 _They'll love apples and cinnamon and will make me laugh._

 _They will have eyes that change color,_

 _And will be kissed by the sun._

 _When I see them it will feel like coming home._

 _And should I need them they will know and come without fear._

 _I will know them by the flower they wear._

 _They will be my savior._

The air felt thin. Or maybe it was because she'd forgotten how to locate her lungs to properly get a breath in.

She battled back the thoughts that had already begun to surge up, threatening to drown her whole. This just wasn't possible. No. Clearly this was wrong. It was nothing more than a coincidence that the woman with the golden halo of curls had eyes that would shift from green to blue and that she happened to love the cinnamon in her coffee this morning. Everyone in town loved that coffee. And so what if she happened to be a detective? That didn't exactly mean she was brave. And just because she was coming around to be sure that no one was lurking around the property had nothing to do with kindness. She was just doing her job. You know, detective-ing.

Her saving grace from her quickly spiraling thoughts came in the way of a faint ring from the doorbell above, though that too proved to be a double edged sword. It would be Emma up there waiting to be let in.

The same Emma she was now dreadfully worried about being more than she'd bargained for.

Again the doorbell sounded and Regina could only curse beneath her breath as she jumped into motion, taking the old whiny stairs two at a time to make up for her dawdling.

"Hey," Emma chuckled awkwardly when the door was finally opened, a broad smile that harnessed the strength of the sun slowly stretched across her face. She teetered back from the balls of her feet to her heels as her hands found their home in the back pockets of her jeans, adding to the hopeless charm that clung to her in the most endearing way Regina had ever seen. "Thought you were standing me up for a minute there."

 _When I see them it will feel like coming home._

Regina's traitorous thoughts taunted her viciously, making her cheeks flush in silent embarrassment. She averted her gaze to her shoes rather than stare at the woman who was simultaneously keying her up while also calming her frayed nerves with just her presence alone.

"No, I was just- I was in the basement looking through some old things. I didn't hear the doorbell at first. I'm sorry I kept you waiting."

"Yeah I can see that," Emma snickered and reached out to swipe her pocket freed thumb across a bit of dusty muck that stuck to Regina's rose stained cheek. "And it wasn't a long wait. So no worries."

If Regina was flustered before it was nothing compared to how she felt now as her body struggled to process the searing path Emma's finger left along her skin, leaving a blazing patch of crimson in its wake. "Um, I… Yes. How- Would you, um." Brow furrowed in frustration, Regina shook her head and tried to think past the gentle touch she'd just received. "Would you like to come in? You still have those questions, right Ms. Swan?"

"Emma," the blonde answered kindly but firmly, a smile fixed on her thin pink lips. "And yeah I do have some things I wanted to discuss but I was thinking maybe we could walk around out here while we talk. Kill two birds with one stone. I'd hate if something happened because I wanted to sneak one of those apple turnovers I heard about yesterday instead of making sure no one was lurking around."

A breathy snort escaped the older woman before she could rein in her amusement. One corner of her pursed lips curled into an almost smirk as she dipped her head a bit, the flustered feelings in the pit of her chest dissipating in light of the hopeful glint in the officer's bright blue gaze.

"Alright, let me go grab my coat and I'll be right back," she said with a small nod before backing away from the door, leaving it open to give Emma the view of her retreating form.

A view the officer didn't mind at all if she were being honest as she swayed from the balls of her feet to her heels and back again.

In the kitchen, littered among her purse and a small stack of mail on the table, Regina picked her pea coat up and, after a short pause, she grabbed a near by paper towel from the roll and scooped up one of the last remaining turnovers before she headed back to the porch. Wordlessly she held the pastry out to the shocked detective and waited until her hands were free to slip her arms into her jacket.

"Shall we?"

Emma hummed her appreciation for the baked good she was handed, a faint hint of pink tinging her fair skin as she laughed. "Is this because I mentioned it or because you're trying to butter me up?"

"I guess that depends on what you want to know," Regina joked, leading them off of the porch steps and out into the yard. It was a pleasant spring afternoon, the sun's rays warm as they washed over her face despite the crisp chill that still clung to the cool beginning of April air. It was days like this that made the long months of winter seem worth it. She loved this time of year.

"So…" She drawled pointedly, casting a glance at the blonde beside her and waited for her to begin while they leisurely strolled towards the back of the house.

In an attempt to stall, Emma took a bite of the turnover to give herself a moment to pull her own scattered thoughts together. She didn't anticipate the rush of pleasure the sweet flakey bite would incur nor the moan that subsequently crawled up her throat as she swallowed the down apple cinnamon goodness.

Instantly her pale cheeks flamed red with embarrassment. Bringing a hand up to cover her mouth she choked out a weak laugh. "Shit, sorry. This is just- _wow_. You _made_ this?! And those muffins at the shop too didn't you! How did you get so good at baking?"

"Magic?" Regina teased, her lower lip finding its way between her teeth as she fought to hold back a laugh. A tactic that failed when incredulous blue eyes shot her a cynical glare. "My Aunt taught me. She use to say that as long as you loved whoever you were baking for you could never go wrong. So I guess that's the secret. They're made with love."

"Cute," Emma tittered, shaking her head before taking another large bite. This time managing to hold back any more embarrassing moans. "Have you always been close with your aunt?"

"You could say that," Regina answered hesitantly. "My parents, they passed away when I was six. Our Aunt Mal took us in and raised us here," she said as she motioned at the land around them. "I don't know where Zelena and I would be if it weren't for Mal. She took us in when we'd lost everything and she did it again when my husband passed away last August."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up such heavy things for you," Emma sighed, her free hand finding its way to the older woman's arm with an apologetic squeeze.

Regina smiled softly, "It's alright. You didn't know."

They walked around the side of the house in silence until Emma cleared her throat, drawing soulful brown eyes to hers once again. She couldn't quite explain the need to share a part of herself with the gorgeous woman beside her but before she could stop the words from slipping free she was sharing a part of herself she rarely let anyone in on.

"I uh, I didn't even know my folks. According to my file I was left in front of a fire station with a note that said 'I tried' when I was a few weeks old. No birth certificate, no medical records. Nothing to go on. Just a note and a guess to when my birthday would be. I don't know which would be worse the never knowing them or knowing them for a while and losing them."

Emma wasn't about to go into the rest of the sob story that was her life. The one that had her bouncing from group home to group home throughout the state of Florida until she eventually aged out of the system, never once having been adopted. That was at least third or fourth date material for sure.

"I think they're both pretty equal," Regina mused with a sad curve of her lips thus pulling Emma from her thoughts of what it might be like to actually go on a date with the devastatingly attractive woman she walked with, telling her all the things that she'd only ever kept to herself.

"Yeah you're probably right."

Silence descended upon them once more as they walked the grounds, giving Emma time to mull over thoughts of losing so much in only a matter of years like Regina had while she finished off her turnover and tucked the used paper towel into her coat pocket.

Nearing the old oak tree, Regina shook with a shudder that had nothing to do with the spring chill in the air and everything to do with the uneasy feeling the gnarled old branches above made her feel. It was silly, she knew, this was just a tree but gazing up at the bare twisted branches... It felt as though they were watching them like it had felt this morning with Robyn. Almost like the out stretched boughs were waiting for the right moment to reach down and snatch-

"Hey, you okay?" Emma's concerned voice broke the silence, startling Regina enough to visibly flinch away from the sound. Without thinking about it, Emma wrapped an arm around the trim waist she'd spent more time thinking about last night than she did on the paper work she was suppose to be filling out and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

Dual looks of shock met as mahogany sought out the deepest depth of stormy blue, both frozen in place by the weight of Emma's arm that ignited the air around them with tension that pulled in all the right places.

One staggered heartbeat, two, three. After five painfully slow beats Emma carefully retracted her arm back to her side, not sure what to do with it now that it had traveled into new territory. _Wonderful_ territory. Territory that was warm and inviting and not at all the kind of territory she should be thinking about when investigating a possible missing persons case on top of the homicides that brought her all the way out to the sticks to begin with.

"Is this…" She trailed off, licking her lips nervously. _What the hell do I do with my arms normally!?_ She freaked, frazzled beyond belief. With all the awkwardness of a thirteen year old boy, the detective crossed her useless limbs across her chest, tucking her hands into her armpits to keep them firmly away from Regina's enticing curves. "Is this where they saw the, uh, guy or whoever?"

Regina cleared her throat and nodded. The heady thrum of something she couldn't quite place - excitement, fear, want? - pulsed through her the moment Emma's hand found purchase on her hip. It was just a half hearted hug. A squish! Nothing more than that and yet the thrill it sent coursing through her had her moving towards the swing to put some distance between them least she shove the other woman against the tree and-

"Y-yes," she stammered around a small cough against her balled up fist. She wasn't going there. Nope. She was definitely _not_ going to think about what those freshly wet lips would feel like pressed against hers. "The sheriff already looked around the area. He couldn't find any foot prints other than the children and my own. I doubt you'll be able to do any better."

"Hmmm," was all Emma said in way of acknowledgement as she began her own investigation, grateful to have something other than Regina to focus on.

After a few minutes of watching the blonde walk around the tree and surrounding space, Regina sighed. "Emma?" She started, feeling foolish for the way her voice cracked at the end when she said her name. "What did you want to talk about? Those questions you still had. We've already told you everything that happened."

Emma glanced up, her gaze already holding skepticism. "Yeah, I heard what _Zelena_ wanted you to say but I'd like to hear your side of things. What really happened out there Regina?"

"I told you, he beat my sister and tried to…"

"He tried to kidnap you," Emma placated, her hands raised to halt the defensiveness she could already see growing in the brunette. "I'm not doubting that. I have an entire case back home centered around him as the prime suspect in three homicides and your sister fits the bill for the kind of girl he was going after. So I'm not doubting you but some of your story just doesn't add up. Nik is not the kinda guy who just disappears without a trace and I don't think he'd have left the both of you alone with his car in some podunk town. I can tell that something's got you spooked."

Emma took a step closer to the tense woman by the swing, offering her the kindest most reassuring smile she could muster. "Look, I wanna to help you. I know you're in some kind of trouble and I want to do whatever I can to help but the only way I _can_ do that is if you start being honest with me."

"And how do you know I'm not being honest with you?" Regina challenged, her chin jutted up despite the slew of fear that had unfurled within, threatening to turn her into a tearful mess at Emma's feet if she continued to watch her with those understanding eyes that seemed to see through the facade she'd built up.

Dipping her chin to her chest, Emma chuckled, her right hand coming up to rub her thumbnail against her lower lip ruefully. "Your eyes give you away... Plus, I kind of have this, I dunno, _thing_ that lets me know when people are lying. I'm not saying you're flat out lying to my face about everything but I don't think you're giving me the full truth and for me to be able to do my job right I need you to be completely honest with me Regina."

Regina floundered and dropped her gaze to the ground. What was she suppose to do? Come clean? How could she explain everything that'd happened without the web of lies and get the younger woman to understand she was just trying to _save_ her sister not once but twice? How could she put into non-incriminating words that the world would be a much better, much _safer_ , place without a deranged man like Nik Thanos running loose?

The words formed on her lips, ready to be purged but the faces of her children, those sweet innocent faces she brought into this world, flashed behind her eyes as she vacillated between doing what Zelena said was right and doing what she'd wanted to since the beginning.

"Emma I-"

"Do you trust me?"

Hesitation flew out the window as Regina resolutely answered yes, firmly nodding her head though she had no actual foundation for this belief, no tangible proof that she could trust Emma. But somehow, in her gut, she _knew_ that she could.

"Then talk to me Regina," Emma implored, boldly taking another step closer. "Tell me what really happened. Do you know where Nik is? Did you or your sister accidentally do _something_ to him? I can help you. I _want_ to help you. You're a good person, I can see that. I just- I don't want you taking the fall when it comes to this creep. _Let me help you_."

" _It's not that simple_. God I wish it were that _simple_!"

Tears stung the backs of Regina's eyes as she moved away from Emma back towards the house in a vain attempt to put distance between herself and the situation that threatened to swallow her down to depths she wasn't sure she could surface from.

"Regina," Emma called, her feet already pulling her after the brunette. The detective could tell by the way her stiff shoulders trembled that Regina was crying or at the very least was about to. "Regina wait. I didn't mean to push you like that. I just want to… Figure this out."

It didn't take her long to catch up to Regina who stood rooted in place near the nicely picketed garden a few yards away from the old home. "I'm sorry. If you say you don't know where he is then you don't. I shouldn't have-" her words cut off short as her gaze landed on what had Regina so entranced. There along the edge of the fencing near the large bushy lavender was a cluster of brilliantly golden daffodils. Only they weren't really clustered. "Does that say- are those flowers spelling… Nik?!"

 _Oh my god, ooooh my goood, O-H-M-Y-G-O-D._ Regina's brain refused to move on from the shock of seeing flowers, flowers that had not been there this morning, less than a foot away from where Nik was buried.

Above them a murder of crows swooped over head and landed among the withered arms of the oak tree, their raucous cawing sent a shiver down the length of Regina's spine. Something _bad_ was growing in the tension filled silence that loomed between the two women as they stood gaping at the floral arraignment that easily equated to 'red rum' in Regina's mind.

"I don't know what the hell kind of game you're trying to play at," Emma seethed, edging back from the display. "But whatever this is isn't funny. You'd better think long and hard about what you want to do Regina because that offer to help you won't stick around forever."

Startled, Regina turned away from the daffodils to stare wide eyed at Emma as the officer continued to back away.

"Emma, wait. Please!"

Emma simply shook her head, too irritated at being played a fool to respond at first. Pacing a few feet away, she whipped back around, her face a wash of frustrated indignation. "When you figure out what the hell you want to do come find me. I'm in room 12 at Granny's. But I swear to god if you keep lying to me you had better find yourself a damn good lawyer because none of this is looking good for any of you, just so you know."

Without another word the detective stalked off, her head still shaking as she made her way around the corner of the home and out of sight, leaving a terrified Regina behind to wade in the weight of her statement.


	11. Chapter 11

_"DID YOU DO IT!?"_

 _Zelena jerked awake so violently she nearly fell from her place on the couch. After Regina had left to take the children to Ruby's she'd given in to the ache of her body and gone to lay down in the living room, the thought of climbing all those stairs up to her room was too much to be bothered with._

 _Her fitful sleep had been plagued with nightmares and now that she was awake she wasn't sure what was real and what wasn't. She watched through blurry eyes as Regina stalked from one side of the fireplace to the other and back, furry pulsating from her in waves._

 _"Did you_ do it _Zelena?!"_

 _"Do what!?"_

 _"The flowers Zelena! The god damn flowers that spell out Nik in the fucking backyard!" Regina shrieked and flung her arm out towards the back of the house in her mounting frustration. She was never one to curse often but right now it felt good to let it fly. She was mad and she sure as hell wanted her thick headed sister to understand that. "Emma was here and she saw them! Is this funny to you!? Is it just some big fucking joke!? Why would you do this Zelena?!"_

 _Despite the pain that flared through her tired body, Zelena sat up with a start, her head pounding to the point of tears. "What!?"_

 _"I can't- I can't keep doing this! I can't live like this! I don't care if we go to jail anymore. I can't_ do _this!"_

* * *

Regina couldn't stop replying the confrontation with her sister after Emma had left yesterday. She'd barely slept between the long bouts of needing to pace that had her out of bed for what felt like the millionth time that night.

At just after five in the morning she'd given up on the notion that she'd get any respite from her thoughts. The fight with Zelena had been bad. Really bad. Accusations flew faster than spit balls on movie day in health class and it only got worse when Regina thought that Zelena was faking illness to get out of her verbal lashing.

It all continued to replay over and over again, looping endlessly, through every late night heave she heard through her door from the bathroom down the hall. Her pride wouldn't allow her to go to her sister. Not then. Not now. She was still far to angry, far to _scared_. She could feel the walls closing in on them. It was only a matter of time before everything shattered and the truth of what they'd done was out.

Regina _knew_ they needed help. Things had gotten way too out of hand and she couldn't do this alone.

So without a second thought she grabbed her robe and threw it on over her nightgown as she rushed from her bedroom, car keys in hand, and thundered down the stairs as quickly as her legs would take her while ignoring the faint call of her name followed by a 'where are you going' from above.

* * *

The roads of Storybrooke were dark and empty. A light mist of rain spattered across Regina's windshield and distorted the sights of the town she'd called home for most of her life. The slow moving grey clouds felt appropriate for her mood. Gloomy. Caged in. Scared. And if she were really being honest with herself, maybe even relieved. Relief that stemmed solely from not having to lie to Emma anymore.

But what _was_ she going to say to Emma? Was there even a way to explain away murder as an accident? A happy one at that. That even if she had the chance to go back to that night on the highway she would do nothing different? Well, maybe she would. Maybe she would shoot him with his own gun instead of poisoning him. Make him suffer like she'd been forced to. Regardless of what way it would happen the results would always be the same. In the end she would always do it. She would never regret killing Nik before he was able to do the same to her sister.

"Just tell her the truth," she breathed into the silence of the car as she pulled into the small parking lot at the back of Granny's diner. "Tell her everything."

As quietly as she could, Regina slipped into the old boarding house turned inn and made her way up the stairs with her heart lodged in her throat all the way to room twelve. She didn't give herself a moment to pause before knocking, fearing that she'd lose her nerve and run back down the stairs if she so much as hesitated to brush the dewy rain drops from her hair and robe.

 _God I hope she doesn't arrest me in this_ , Regina thought fleetingly, her fist poised to knock again when she heard a loud thud and grumble from the other side of the door.

"JUST A MINUTE," came from behind the closed door followed by lowly muttered curses until finally a chain was being pulled back and the door cracked open enough that a bedraggled Emma, still pulling on a shirt, could be seen. "Regina? Wha-… Are you okay? Did something happen?! Damn it, I should have looked around more. Shit. I'm sorry!"

More alter than she was when she initially opened the door, Emma yanked the door open further, instantly shifting from sleepy confusion to concerned alterness in the blink of an eye. "Let me get some pants and my gun and I'll go-"

"Emma wait, please. It's- it's nothing like that. I just," Regina faltered, the nerves she'd barely contained surged up in full force once again. Pressing her palm against her stomach, she breathed in a deep breath and released it just as quick. "I want to tell you what happened with Nik. The truth. All of it. From the beginning."

The shift of gears in Emma's head was visible by the way her body froze and a mask of suspicion settled across her once open features. For a terrifying second Regina wasn't sure that she'd be allowed in to give her statement. The image of Emma slapping her in cuffs and hauling her directly to the police station down the street danced through her mind.

Do not pass go. Do not collect 200 dollars.

 _Oh my god what the hell are you doing you idiot_ , the irrational side of her brain screamed just as Emma reluctantly moved aside to allow her entrance.

"So you're finally admitting that you've been lying to me this whole time," Emma grunted and turned to face her with her arms folded across her chest. She nudged the door shut with a bump of her hip and watched the brunette swallow roughly through shrewd viridian eyes.

Regina balked. The words she'd recited to herself on the walk from the car to the room failed her under the detective's sharp scrutiny.

Breathing out a heavy sigh, Emma moved to turn on the bedside lamp, illuminating the room with a warm comforting glow that was at odds with the tension that had settled around them. "Alright, that wasn't entirely fair. Why don't you… Take a seat over there," she offered, nodding to the rumpled up bed. "We can start from the beginning okay?"

All Regina could do was nod stiffly, her body not wanting to comply with the direction to sit until Emma reached out to place a comforting hand against her trembling shoulder. When had she started to shake?

"I'm going to help you Regina. I promised you I would. Can you trust me?"

Insecurity danced in the dark pools of Regina's eyes as she searched every inch of Emma's honest face. This was the second time in less than twenty four hours that the blonde had asked her that. Last night it had been easy to answer when she'd planned to continue to dance around the truth but now? Did she trust Emma enough to believe she wouldn't toss her in the nearest jail cell to rot for the rest of her life?

Breathing out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding, Regina nodded again. "Yes." The weight of the word hung in the silence of the bedroom.

"Good. Okay, that's… Really great," the younger woman soothed with another stroke of her arm before pulling it back. "We can work with that."

Uncertainty continued to rage war within Regina. Was this the right thing to do? Watching Emma snatch her phone from the bedside table, she sighed. Of course this was the right thing to do. It was the only thing she'd wanted to do since she drove away from that god awful gas station. She had to come clean.

"I… I don't really know where to begin," she confessed, wringing her hands nervously against her stomach.

"The beginning is usually a good place to start," Emma halfheartedly joked, taking the seat that Regina refused and opened a voice recording app on her phone. "This is the statement of Regina Mills, taken on Sunday April 9th, 2017. You can start whenever you're ready."

Steadying herself with a deep breath, Regina nodded, and slowly paced the length of the bed. "It was a Friday a few weeks ago," she began and didn't stop once as she finally let loose the tidal wave of truth that spanned from trivial details about a letter she sent to recounting every bruise that marred her sister's delicate skin when she initially found her on the motel room floor in Charlotte. Detail after detail poured from her and with every admission the lighter Regina felt.

Each new revelation made Emma's skin crawl. It was like looking through the case files that sat sprawled out on the nightstand. _Things could have gone so much worse_ , the detective thought with a soft hiss of disgust that pulled Regina's gaze back up from the floor, a frown of her own forming until Emma's hand lifted apologetically. 'Sorry' she mouthed and nodded for her to continue.

"He pulled the gun out again, he had it up to her neck like this," Regina explained, lifting her two pointed fingers up to mimic the barrel of a gun against the soft flesh of her neck. "And he said that it would be an honor for her to die. I nearly drove us into the median trying to get him away from her. That's when I made him hand me his bottle of- I don't even _know_ what it was that he was drinking- and I found my sister's supply of ground hemlock in her bag. I only meant to sedate him, I swear! I was so scared. I was terrified he would pull the trigger on her- I just wanted to get him away from Zelena. I wasn't paying attention to how much of the sedative I put in the bottle- I should have but I- there was so much happening. I only meant to sedate him."

Regina nearly sank to the floor as she continued to confess, her eyes glistened as she begged Emma to understand. "I didn't mean to kill him," she choked out around the lump that began to form in her throat.

A heavy sigh left Emma's lips as she debated what to do next. She could practically feel the desperation radiating off of the now stalk still woman in front of her. After a long pause she stabbed her finger against the stop button and pointedly patted the space on the bed next to her. "What happened next? What did you do with the body?"

The laugh that came from Regina was clipped and laden with poorly concealed hysteria. "Which time?"

"What do you mean which time?"

Regina ran a hand through her rain frizzled hair, shaking her head. "After we realized he was dead Zelena decided- no, _we_ decided to bring him back," she admitted, taking the seat beside Emma, not noticing how rigid the detective had turned at her latest confession. "I knew it was wrong. Dabbling in magic like that is dangerous but it was try or go to jail. Zelena was sure no one would believe we poisoned him on accident. So we brought him home and… and it worked."

Emma's eyes narrowed. "What worked?"

"The casting. We brought him back. I don't know _how_ we managed to but we did. But Nik was- he came back a monster. More so than before. There was no reasoning with him. He attacked Zelena again. I had no choice but to hit him. He would have killed my sister if I didn't stop him."

Scrambling to her feet, Emma popped off of the bed in a flash and began to stalk the room. Her hands dove into her tangled locks like that action alone would help her make sense of the yarn she'd just been told. " _Jesus Christ Regina._ What!?" Her irritated steps came to a stop so that she could direct a furious glare at the woman on the bed. "You expect me to believe you killed Nik, _brought him back to life_ \- because you're a witch- and then _killed him_ again. Is that _seriously_ what you're going with!? You said you trusted me! That you were going to tell me the truth!"

"It _is_ the truth!" Regina howled, her face contorting into pained disbelief. Couldn't Emma hear the honesty in her statement? Couldn't she _feel_ it?

"I can't believe I let you waste my time," Emma hissed, dropping her hands from her hair and turning away from the bed, muttering to herself, "You always have to be drawn to the fucking lunatics Swan, _every god damn time_."

Sitting up straighter, Regina scowled, her voice turning sharp in her growing frustration. "I'm _not_ a lunatic. I _am_ a witch. I may not _like it_ but I am. Zelena and I brought Nik back after I killed him and then I killed him again because it was the only thing I could do. I _know_ this sounds insane Emma, _I do_ , but it's not. It happened just like I told you. I killed Nik and now I'm beginning to think his spirit is haunting us."

"Oh, well yeah, " Emma laughed manically, tossing her hands into the air just to let them slap back down against her thighs. "Because why wouldn't he be?"

" _Emma I'm serious_!"

" _Magic isn't real Regina_!"

With her lips pursed into a firm line Regina glared at Emma. Really glared. Here she was being open and honest and it was getting them no where because Emma refused to trust her. The irony was not lost.

Maybe she'd expected too much from the woman but she'd honestly thought that of all the things Emma would get hung up on the magic aspect wasn't even a thought. The double homicide? Totally. Not the magic.

"Fine. You don't believe me? I'll show you."

"How ar-"

Holding up a warning finger like she would with Henry or Robyn, Regina looked around for something she could use to help bring Emma into the light about who she really was. "No, you want proof? Fine," she grumbled and snatched one of the pillows from the headboard. With some effort she managed to rip the inside seam, allowing her to spill the feathery contents around her lap.

"What the hell are you doing?! I'm going to have to pay for that!"

"Shhh!" The older woman snapped and closed her eyes. "I haven't done this in a very, very long time Emma. So please just bare with me," she quietly pleaded and raised her arms up to stretch out at her sides, her fingers clenching and unclenching as she fought to find her focus.

Despite the years away from serious magic she could still feel the low steady thrum of it just below the surface begging to be released. It was almost comforting.

Regina breathed in deeply, opening herself up to the fathomless well of potential that laid dormant inside and carefully pushed it out through the tips of her fingers and down towards the feathers that reacted instantly to her silent demand.

The sound of Emma's startled gasp brought her back to reality. Her eyes snapped open and connected with bewildered green. The feathers that had been scattered around her legs now floated in the space around them, twirling and moving as though caught in an invisible breeze. A small smirk slowly began to spread across Regina's lips the more Emma struggled to form a thought. "Do you believe me now Ms. Swan?"

"I… You-.. How- am I?" There were no words. The words had left the building. Hell they'd gone and left the state and all Emma could do was stare in blatant dismay at the feathers that danced around her. "WHATTHEHELLWASTHAT!? AREYOUREALLYDOINGTHIS?!"

"Emma," Regina began tentatively moving to push herself up from the bed but the second her body rose from the mattress Emma sprang away from her with her arms extended in front of her to stop Regina from moving any closer.

"Whoa! Whoa- I… Whoa! Hold on- so you're," again the words wouldn't come. Couldn't come. This was ridiculous. Witches weren't _real_. This wasn't the wizard of fucking oz! This was bumfuck nowhere Maine! Where were the Charmed jokes now!?

Regina nodded and released the magic that held the feathers in the air. "A witch," she finished for the wary detective.

Emma blew out a haughty breath, shaking her head despite the evidence that fluttered to the floor around them. "No, that was- you can't… Regina that's insane! _This is all insane_! Witches aren't real! You can't bring people back from the dead! This isn't a bad 90's tv show! The power of three will not set you free! This is the _real_ world- and not that crappy MTV version. Reality doesn't have magic!"

The more worked up Emma became the worse Regina felt. She'd been so sure that Emma would believe her, would help her, that she hadn't actually factored in Emma's reaction being in the negative. "I know it's a lot to take in but Em-"

"A-LOT-TO-TAKE-IN-ARE-YOU-FREAKING-KIDDING-ME-RIGHT-NOW?!" Hands found their way into blonde tresses again as she began to pace once more but never close enough to get within a foot of Regina. "You confessed to killing the guy I came up here to bring in for questioning and then brought him back _with magic_! _HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSE TO REACT TO THAT REGINA_!?"

Every harshly spoken word made Regina wince. Her hands fiddled with the keys in her lap as a painful ache blossomed in her chest. God it was just one mistake after another. "I- I'm sorry. I thought you could- I don't know," she paused, struggling to find the word she wanted. "-help. You said you could _help_! I couldn't keep lying to you! I'm so scared- all the time. I'm in over my head! I don't want to lose my children Emma."

Tears stung Regina's eyes but she refused to let them well up. She was _not_ going to cry. Now was not the time. She edged towards the door, the ache in her chest swelling to the point of pain and nearly had her doubling over. "I should, I'm sorry, I'll go," she managed to spit out through her clenched teeth.

"Regina wait," Emma called and hesitantly moved toward the woman who was already stumbling out of the room.

The burn in Regina's chest intensified, causing her to misstep as she stepped into the hallway. Something was wrong. She rubbed the scar on her hand as she blindly moved down the stairs until she was running out of the inn, ignoring every shout of her name that followed.

 _Regina._

 _I_ _need you…_

 _Something's wrong._

Her head whipped up towards the darkening grey clouds. "Zelena," she grunted through the growing discomfort in her chest that she now realized wasn't her own. This phantom pain shot through her again and she was certain she could hear her sister's cry from where she stood across town. "Hold on," Regina sobbed, fumbling with her keys the minute she unlocked her car. "I'm coming!"

* * *

"How many traffic lights does this god forsaken town need!?"

Fury mingled with unease as Regina slammed through the front door. Unlike what she'd expected the house was still. Through every red light she endured on her way home she was plagued with Zelena's suffering. Every pleading call had her adrenaline spiking until she was shaking, her hands clammy and her heart pounding. And now that she was here there was nothing. No sounds. No woman laying in the foyer on her death bed. Nothing.

"Zelena?" Even to her own ears her voice sounded off, wavering in a way that gave away how worried she was. "Zelena! If this was some kind of stunt to get me to come home-"

Regina'd barely made it half way to the kitchen when the low hiss of something moving quickly through the air sounded behind her followed instantly by a sickeningly loud thunk. She didn't even have time to acknowledge the blinding pain that forced her to her knees before the world around her went dark.

* * *

Pain.

That was the first thing that registered in Regina's fog riddled mind. Pain and the fact that her eyelids felt glued together. What the hell had she done to end up feeling like this? She couldn't remember anything. Well, anything that wasn't blinding pain and darkness.

In an attempt to alleviate some of the pressure on the back of her head, Regina shifted her weight and whimpered. This wasn't her bed and… What was that noise? She struggled to open her eyes, the heavy twinges of pain slowly but surely taking the back burner as panic settled in. Why wouldn't her eyes open?

"Regina?! Oh my god! _Regina_!"

That voice. That was a voice she knew and it was close. Real close. Regina felt hands gently touch her face, her arms, her wrists. "Em… ma? Wha-" Again she fought to open her eyes, pushing and fighting for one lid to flutter then the other until she could vaguely make out the blurred vision of blonde hair and fierce green eyes. "What… Why are?"

"Jesus, Regina! I thought you were dead! I felt- after you left I don't know! I just knew I needed to get here, to get to _you_ , and when I got here the door was wide open and you're- who the hell tied you up!? Oh my _god_ are you _bleeding_!?"

Sluggishly, Regina tried to bring her hand up to touch the temple that felt slick with something warm only to be stopped by the tug of the rope at her wrists. Right, Emma'd said something about being tied up. Regina struggled to sit up. The pounding in her head paired with her lack of hands would have made the feat impossible if it weren't for Emma's demanding grip on her elbow.

"Come on! We've gotta get you out of here. Did you get a look at who did thi-"

"Detective Swan," a husky masculine voice drawled from behind them, "How wonderful to see you again."

Every nerve ending in Regina's body fired at once as her blood ran cold. She knew that voice too.

"Nik."


	12. Chapter 12

Cold dread pooled in the pit of Regina's stomach and the hair at the nape of her neck prickled and stood on end.

Nik.

But it couldn't be him. He was dead. She'd killed him. She'd _buried_ him. Yes she was beginning to think he was haunting them but that didn't mean… Spirits couldn't just manifest like that. Could they?

Regina wished Mal were there. The wise older woman would have known the answer to that. She would have known what to do. She'd have known how to _fix_ everything. Why hadn't they gone to her sooner?!

With Mal gone that left only herself to stand up to this never ending threat that Nik had become.

She braced for the worst, terrified of what she was about to see. Would he still have the casting needles through his eyes? Would he be rotting? God she hoped he wasn't rotting. Squinting her eyes, Regina peeked around Emma in the direction Nik's voice had come from.

"Zelena?" She questioned, confusion replacing the apprehension she'd been wearing.

She'd heard Nik's voice as clear as day, she was sure of it, but he wasn't the one who stood in the archway of the kitchen. Regina wriggled her body to the edge of the table, her bound wrists making it as difficult to maneuver her legs over the side of the table as it was for her throbbing head allow her brain to think straight. "Zelena did you do this? I thought- what the hell is going on?"

A hard mocking laugh sounded from the redhead and froze her in place, her hands stilled against Emma's shoulder where she'd placed them to steady herself as she stood. The dread that had initially settled in Regina shifted to horror.

That wasn't Zelena's laugh.

" _Ooooh Gina_ ," the body of Zelena cooed, the masculine husk unmistakable. "I think you know exactly what's going on. Did you really think it would be that easy to get rid of me?"

That wasn't her sister at all.

"Whaaaat the…"

Regina ignored Emma's lowly muttered curse. Now wasn't the time to humor the woman who had her gun free of its holster and trained at Zelena's feet, ready to use should the situation escalate. Not when her heart struggled to beat and her palms began to sweat. Not when her sister wasn't… "Nik?"

Again a low rumbled chuckle filled the kitchen. "In the flesh," he answered with a flourish of Zelena's hand. Smirking, he lewdly stroked his hands along the curves of his host's chest and hips all the while holding Regina's gaze with nothing but cruel smugness reflected in his piercing stare. "I hope you don't mind my choice in loner. It was really my only option. I feel I should thank _you_ for that. Without your use of her blood when you brought me back I'd never have been able to make the connection."

"You parasite," Regina spat and moved to take an aggressive step forward but was stopped by Emma's sprawled hand against her stomach.

"What the hell is going on here Regina," Emma asked, her wide eyes never leaving Zelena though it was clear her words were directed at the brunette she'd once again positioned herself in front of. "You were… You were telling the truth. About _everything_."

" _Of course I was!_ "

"You really killed him?!"

Zelena, or rather Nik, pushed away from the archway he'd been leaning against and stalked into the room, a smirk firmly fixed to his host's lips. "Oh Emma. Sweet, naive, Emma. You really have no _idea_ what you've stepped into here do you? Well allow me to enlighten you. She and her sister took my life and now-" he paused, his murderous gaze landing on Regin. "I'm going to take theirs," he growled and launched with an enraged howl at the woman who took him from this world.

There were screams. Lots of screams. And just as many shouts. Commands to stand down and begging to not shoot because that was _still_ _Zelena in there somewhere._

It was anarchy in the kitchen.

Nik slammed the full weight of his borrowed body into Emma, knocking her to the floor in his pursuit of Regina.

" _DID YOU THINK YOU COULD GET AWAY WITH THIS_ ," he raged.

Emma hissed and scrambled to her feet, her gun pushed too far under the table to grab even if she wanted to. She was working on adrenaline and fear. Fear of hurting Zelena, fear of what Nik would do to Regina if she didn't hurt her sister's body. It was that raging worry that sent her rushing headlong at him- her- whatever Zelena was. Her arms curled around the redhead's body, yanking him back as he advanced on Regina who'd made a run for the cabinets at the other end of the kitchen.

She should have expected it. It's one of the first thing they teach you at the academy when learning to apprehend a resisting suspect. But even then, in the heat of the moment, she didn't expect Zelena's head to come hurling back to connect with her face.

Tears blurred Emma's eyes and she lost her grip on the body she held. She could feel the tell tale trickle of warmth in her nose but she didn't care, not when Nik was halfway across the room and closing in on Regina.

Regina blew at the bonds on her wrists as she clumsily ran, the rope that held her captive burning away with the incantation she no longer needed to say aloud for the casting to work. She could hear the scuffle behind her but her focus was on her cabinet of herbs. If she could get to the ground poppy dust-

She felt the painful yank of her hair before she heard the lowly hissed words at her ear.

"You bitch, you thought you could take her from me?! From her destiny!?"

And then she was falling, her legs unable to keep themselves under her body as she was shoved into the cabinet and no amount of reaching for the counter could save her from impacting with the floor in a breathtaking slam.

The cry that fell from Regina's lips as the back of her head collided with the floorboards rivaled the frightened one from seconds before. Darkness danced around the edges of her vision, threatening to pull her under. Nausea and all manner of dizziness flooded her at once and for a long standing moment she couldn't hear anything but ringing.

Her eyes sluggishly rose to meet the sneering gaze above her. She tried to make out what her sister's lips were saying but her head hurt too much. The ringing was too loud. She couldn't focus.

 _This is how you're going to die_ , she marveled as Nik pulled a butcher knife from the block on the counter. _I love you_ , she thought with a fervid push of power, hoping it would be felt by her children, by Mal, Zelena. She couldn't think of Emma. Not directly. It wasn't love. Not yet, but when she closed her eyes she could see how effortless it would be to fall for the detective. Like breathing.

Regina's heart stuttered with resignation. This was it. She forced her eyes to open for one last look at her sister who wasn't her sister, hoping to see a glint of something that would let her know Zelena was still in there when a flash of blue and blonde and body hurtled above her head landing square against Zelena's chest knocking the redhead back.

" _Emma, no_!" Regina's voice was strangled and hoarse and her arms wouldn't listen long enough to push her body up to allow her to _see_ anything. She didn't stop trying, not until she could vaguely hear through the din in her ears. The muffled sounds of struggling and fists- something metal clicking against metal- and then retching. That was her own addition to the bedlam as the world swayed and continued to fog over.

Regina's eyes began to droop closed, the darkness so inviting it couldn't be refused much longer until the commanding voice boomed around them.

" _What in the name of Hecate is going on_!?"

Mal.

Relief as sweet as a warm summer storm washed over Regina. A salve on her terrified soul. They weren't alone. Auntie would know what to do.

Auntie would…

And everything faded away for the second time that morning.

xXx

BIP… BIP… BIP… BIP...

Regina groaned and tried to turn away from whatever was making that god awful noise that was keeping tempo with her throbbing head but it didn't do any good. The noise was everywhere- around the room, in her head, rattling through her nerves. And god did she still feel nauseous, maybe she shouldn't have turned her head.

A loud biiiing joined the ongoing racket and it made her whimper. What the hell was making all these horrifically loud noises? She was going to be ill if they didn't stop. She could already feel the queasiness roiling into something more substantial.

"Regina? _Oh thank god_. I was starting to get really worried!"

For the second time that day Regina was startled by the sound of the voice near her and much like earlier she fought to open her eyes. "Em… ma?"

"Ssssh, hey don't push yourself. Take it slow," Emma coaxed, brushing the tips of her fingers along the forearm closest to her. "How are you-"

"I'm going to be sick," Regina interrupted, her usually warm complexion taking on a sallow sickly hue as clamminess erupted across her brow. She tried to sit up but pain and dizziness held her captive against what felt like a bed. All she could do was press the back of her hand against her mouth and hope Emma would find something for her to be sick into.

 _Oh god don't let me throw up on her_ , she silently pleaded to any deity within hearing distance.

Springing into action, Emma grabbed for the first thing she could reach and thrust the unused water pitcher in front of Regina, barely making it before the woman lost control of her stomach. She couldn't help but wince with each hard heave that rippled through Regina's hunched form. "Just ride it out, it's alright," she assured, tentatively brushing chestnut locks away from Regina's sweat slicked face with her free hand. "Feel a little bit better now?"

Regina's whimpered grunt was all Emma got in way of an answer. Dark eyes lifted in confusion, finally taking in her surroundings.

"Where?"

"The hospital. I brought you here. You really scared the hell out of me Regina."

Once sure that there would be no more episodes of Linda Blair-itis, Emma sat the ruined plastic pitcher down on the counter behind her chair and moved to take her seat again. "Do you remember anything that happened at the house before you passed out?"

"I passed out?"

"Yeah, well I guess it was more like you lost consciousness. I don't know. You must have hit your head again or something because when I looked back from cuffing Niklena you were out. I thought you were dead. If your Aunt hadn't been there to assure me that she could feel you- which, by the way I will need a full explanation for when you're feeling up to it because holy shit this witch bs is kind of crazy and way more like that Craft than I'd like-"

Regina groaned and brought a hand up to cover her aching eyes. "Emma."

"Oh, shit. You're probably in a lot of pain. Here let me go find someone- they probably need to know you're awake," Emma admitted as she popped up from her seat with an apologetic smile that was missed by the woman in the hospital bed. "I'll be… Just- yeah. I'll be right back."

What the hell had happened to land her in the hospital? No matter how hard Regina tried to think back nothing would come other than mind numbing pain. It pulsed deep behind her eyes and radiated out through every inch of her skull with every bip that sounded from the monitor at her bedside.

If only the pain would stop so she could actually try to think straight.

"Aaaah I see you're finally awake Regina," an amused voice called and brought her attention to the man who walked in with Emma. He flipped through a few pages on his clipboard as he neared her bed before discarding it on her lap in favor of taking out his penlight to check her eyes. "Can you remember my name?"

A loud scoff left Regina's lips and she rolled her eyes so dramatically it hurt. "Of course I know your name Dr. Whale. You dated my sister and delivered both of my children. It would be very difficult to forget the man who had his hand up my-"

"And their names are…" He prodded with the utmost patience as he checked her pupil dilation in one eye and then the next, completely ignoring her agitation with a smirk he didn't even attempt to hide.

"Henry Daniel Colter and Robyn Alexia Colter. Are we really going to go through all of this? It's 2017 and there is a cheeto in office. I didn't eat breakfast this morning because I went to speak with Emma," she groused with a nod in Emma's direction. "But it would have been oatmeal. There. Have I covered all of your superfluous questions now? I don't need questions. What I need is for this headache to go away and to stop feeling so nauseous so that I can go home Victor."

Emma's snicker that came out as a poorly concealed cough was the next recipient of Regina's glare before she returned her hardened stare at the doctor who also chuckled.

Dr. Whale dropped his penlight back into the pocket of his lab coat and nodded. "Well, your irritability combined with your poor pupil response is leading me to confirm that you do indeed have a mild to moderate concussion but I'll need to do a few more simple exams to be sure. Your CT scan came back in the clear for swelling and there was no bleeding we could detect. There was also no fracturing at the back of your head despite adamant suggestions we double check to be sure," his humor filled gaze darted to Emma at that before quickly returning to Regina. "I'll go get you something for the pain and nausea before we continue with the exam, alright?"

"Uh, yeah Doc?" Emma said, her hand raised as though this were school and she was waiting to be picked to answer a question nobody asked. "She sorta threw up when she woke up. She's gonna need a new water thing," she grimaced and nodded toward the ruined pitcher on the counter.

"Ahhh, I see. I'll see what I can do."

Regina glared down at her lap and said nothing. Her clenched jaw the only indicator that she was struggling.

As soon as the smug Doctor was out of the room Emma inched closer to the bed cautiously. "You gonna be okay?"

Emma watched Regina try to shake her head no, at least she assumed it was no. The movement didn't get far enough to be anything but a twitch before a shudder of what she could only assume was dizziness or nausea overtook the brunette, causing her ashen features to contort.

A traitorous tear slipped down Regina's cheek followed by another and another and another. She vainly tried to swipe each offending tear away. She tried but there were too many to contend with. Too much hurt. Too much confusion. She gave up fighting and pressed her head back into the stiff pillows at her back with a mewl of agony.

The tenderness at the base of her skull clouded her senses. Her tears turned to sobs that in turn did nothing to ease up the hamming inside of her head. Why wouldn't it just stop?!

"Heeeey."

Instantly Emma was at her side, the tips of her fingers brushing along the trails of tears, over the bridge of her nose to continue to take the traitorous moisture away and it only served to make Regina cry harder. God she missed feeling this. Feeling like someone gave a damn. Like she mattered enough to be comforted by gentle touches and soothingly whispered words in darkened rooms.

"I know it's a lot but we're going to get you out of here, get you filled in on what went down and then… We can talk to your Aunt and figure this all out. I promise. You just have to hold on a little longer and we'll be out of here," Emma ensured, her forehead pressed against Regina's temple as she leaned over the bedrail, the need to comfort- to touch and protect- the crying woman surpassing her internal revulsion at so wildly invading someone's personal space like she was. "We'll be out of here soon."

xXx

The 'soon' Emma had promised turned out to be hours of waiting. Waiting for confirmation on a concussion they all _knew_ she had. Waiting for paperwork to be filled out. Waiting to be discharged. Waiting for her god damn life to not be so god damn messed up.

By the time they left the hospital the sun had set and the world around them was thrown into darkness and stars. The beauty of the night felt at odds with her thoughts as Regina wondered what they'd be walking into as they pulled up in front of her Aunt's.

Would Zelena be herself? Did Mal take care of it? What were they going to do about Nik? Was there anything they _could_ do? The one time she'd called the house Mal had blatantly refused to speak of anything but how she was doing and when she'd be home. While that had been comforting it had also been worrying. What did that mean for her sister?

"You ready to go in?"

Emma's soft voice pulled Regina from her thoughts. She looked over at the blonde who had stayed with her through every minute of her stay at Storybrooke Memorial and smiled tentatively. "If I say no will you drive away?"

A warm chuckle filled the rental car. "Where would you like to go m'lady?" The joke died on Emma's lips and her eyes dropped to the steering wheel, grateful for the darkness that concealed her quickly heating cheeks. "I mean, yeah, I could just drive away but we don't really get a choice in backing out do we? We kinda have to go kick some poltergeist butt or whatever it is he is, right?"

Regina watched her fingers play with the ID tag that still adorned her wrist absently rather than risk catching Emma's gaze. "You do. You have a choice. You don't have to do anything more than you already have Emma. You can leave and never look back. This isn't your world and certainly not your fight."

Silence settled thick and poignant around them and Regina began to think this was it. She would say goodbye to the detective and that would be that. It would be better that way. Emma would be safe, she would save her sister with Mal, and she would never have to wonder if Emma had stayed because of a spell she'd cast when she was seven.

Everyone would win. Kind of.

Fingers, as tentative as ever, brushed against the back of her hand before curling around to offer a firm squeeze. Regina drew her eyes up slowly and the look she was met with in those stormy blue eyes took her breath away.

"I promised you we would do this together and I don't go back on my promises," Emma said with a hint of a smile curling up her lips. "Let's head inside and see what your Aunt has to say… And maybe you can explain this whole my suspect is possessing your sister thing a little more, cause I'm still a bit fuzzy on that."

Regina snorted but nodded her head in agreement, her fingers constricting in a grateful squeeze. "I think we're all a little fuzzy on that." After a long pause she broke the quiet connection between their hands and slowly pushed the car door open. "Come on, Mal will be waiting."

Emma nodded and followed suit, stumbling out of the car to take up her place at Regina's side as they walked up to the house. "Soooo," she drawled, stuffing her hands deep into the pockets of her jacket, a hint of a dimpled grin tugging at her lips. "Does this big powwow with your Aunt include some awesome coffee? It's been a _loooong_ day. Some crazy lady woke me up at like five this morning, totally walked in on me in my boxers and started ripping up my pillows. I then had to follow her home and throw down with her kitchen knife wielding sister- who wasn't even really her sister apparently- and then had to sit at the hospital all day with her while getting hit on by the most disgusting peroxide dipped doctor to ever grace this planet despite telling him repeatedly that I'm gay. I could really go for some otherworldly good coffee..."

For the first time in what felt like days Regina laughed. Hard. Her shoulder bumped into the detective's as she chuckled, nodding her head as her eyes glittered teasingly. "Yeah, I think that can be arranged."


End file.
